Their New-Found Family

by Rebecca Winters

  “What a terrible experience you had to go through.” Her voice trembled.

  “I don’t remember any of it. When I woke up, I was able to go home and get on with my life.”

  “Except that you still get headaches.”

  “Occasionally.”

  “I bet it’s more than that or Alain would never have been prompted to call me. Tell me the truth. How often do they come?”

  “Since I left the hospital, there’s been no pattern. Sometimes they hit in clusters. Sometimes I can go several months without one.”

  “Sounds like migraine.”

  “Migraine medication doesn’t work on me.”

  “What do you do for them?”

  “Sleep them off with an ice bag.” His eyes narrowed as he studied her. “Why the sudden concern?”

  “Natalie needs to understand so she’ll know what to do for you when one comes on. I’m not always going to be around.”

  “That sounded cryptic,” he bit out. “What in the hell are you trying to tell me?”

  Her head reared. “What do you mean?”

  “Are you trying to say you won’t always be here? Do you have a medical condition our daughter isn’t aware of?”

  “No. Of course not! I only meant that when I go back to Concord, I want her to be reassured that you’ll be all right should she discover you’re in pain.”

  His dark brows knit together. “Who said anything about you going anywhere?”

  “I live there.”

  “You’re on vacation.”

  “I—I’ve been thinking about that.” Her voice sounded unsteady. “Since we know Natalie already adores it here, I’ll stay another day, then leave. She can stay with you until school starts. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

  “We’ve been over this ground before. But what’s the rush? I told you Steve is welcome here anytime.”

  “This isn’t about Steve. Can’t you see that if I’m not around, Alain won’t feel so threatened? I have to go, Tris. Otherwise the situation doesn’t have a prayer of working!”

  Before he could stop her she’d disappeared from the kitchen. Her abrupt departure touched off his own deep seated worry over his nephew’s depressed state of mind.

  But to his chagrin, her determination to leave Switzerland had set off other concerns. Ones he didn’t dare investigate too closely since they had little to do with either of the children.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “DAD? I just had a bite!”

  “Hold on, petite. Play with it for a minute, but let it know you’re in charge.”

  “Okay, but it’s tugging hard.”

  “Stay with it. I’m coming.”

  No no no.

  Rachel bowed her head. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. Alain should be the one calling out to his uncle in exhilaration.

  They’d been fishing in the gorge all day minus the time taken off for a picnic lunch and snacks provided by Simone, Tris’s housekeeper. The longer they went without anyone catching a fish, the more determined Alain was to stick to it.

  Natalie was having the time of her life with her father. She couldn’t care less how long they stayed out. He was her captive audience.

  She chatted about her cat Boots who’d died of liver disease. Tris heard all about the funeral they’d held. Her grandpa had officiated. She rattled on about her nana, her friends, her favorite movies and music, what she liked and disliked about school, her tonsillectomy.

  Further upstream Alain stayed hunkered down by some rocks. He’d been there hours waiting patiently for a brown trout to rise out of the pool and take his brand-new fly.

  Why did it have to be Natalie with beginner’s luck this late in the day?

  “Trust ma belle fille to catch the only fish!” Tris called out. “It’s big enough for everyone to have part of it for dinner.” Pride in his daughter rang in his voice.

  Rachel wanted to stay and help Alain, but she was a novice herself. Besides, after Tris’s talk with her last night, he wouldn’t appreciate her ignoring his wishes to let him handle Alain.

  She left her spot to join them. Tris looked surprised that his nephew hadn’t come with her. “You two go on.” He handed Rachel the keys. “Alain and I will catch up to you at the car.”

  With a nod to Tris, she and Natalie started down the ravine. After they’d gone a ways, she gave her daughter a hug. “Congratulations.”

  “I couldn’t believe I caught one. I told dad I’d like to come back here again tomorrow.”

  Her comment gave Rachel the opening she was looking for. “I think that’s a terrific idea.” Maybe Alain would get lucky.

  “Did you have fun?”

  “I had a great time.”

  “I’m sorry you didn’t catch one.”

  “I’m not.” They kept on going, picking their way around the rocks and underbrush. “Honey? Now that you’re settled here, would you mind very much if I flew back to Concord?”

  Natalie looked up at her in surprise. “When?”

  “Maybe tomorrow or the next day.”

  After a silence, “Did Steve ask you to come home?”

  “That’s not what’s important. I’ve been watching you and your father. He loves you very much. While it’s still summer and he’s on vacation, I think it’s important for the two of you to be alone for a while. Up until now I’ve had you all to myself.”

  “Have you told Dad?”

  “Yes. We talked about it last night.” At least she’d talked about it, then hurried off without hearing his response.

  “When will you come back?”

  “Why don’t we leave it open? How about until we miss each other too much.”

  They reached the car and put their fishing poles away. “Are you going to miss me?”

  “Natalie—what a question!” She crushed her in her arms. “You’re my whole life, honey.”

  “I know. I’m going to miss you, too.”

  But not enough to tell me not to go. That was because Tris had already made their daughter feel safe.

  In a few minutes he returned with a taciturn Alain and they headed back to Caux. En route Tris announced he would fix dinner provided everyone helped. Natalie was all for that.

  Once they arrived at the house, he divied up the jobs, but Alain was patently unhappy about it. When they sat down to eat, he refused his portion of trout.

  Rachel caught Tris’s worried glance and decided this was the best time to make her plans known. She put her fork down.

  “Tris? I’ve been talking to Natalie and have made up my mind to leave for New Hampshire in the morning. There are several flights I can take from Geneva, but if you insist on sending me back on your jet, I won’t say no.” She chuckled.

  It was a given he wouldn’t let her travel on a commercial flight, so it was best to just cave in ahead of time to avoid argument.

  Alain sat straighter in his chair. “You didn’t stay very long.”

  Clearly he sounded pleased by the news. Her instincts had been right. He wanted her gone. But she shivered at the fierceness of Tris’s regard trained on her.

  Avoiding his eyes she said, “I only planned to come for a few days, Alain. I’ve a job to get back to.”

  “Mom’s got a boyfriend,” Natalie informed him.

  Rachel’s talk with her daughter about Alain’s fear had obviously sunk in. Natalie had purposely introduced Steve into the conversation because she was trying to include Alain by confiding in him. At Natalie’s age you told secrets when you wanted to make friends with someone. What a terrific daughter she was.

  Alain glanced at Natalie. “What’s his name?”

  “Steve Clarkson. He’s pretty nice,” she added. “He came to my last hockey game.”

  “You play ice hockey?” Alain looked stunned.

  “Yup. Do you?”

  “No. Uncle Tris won’t let me.”

  “That’s a little harsh isn’t it, mon gars?” Tris interjected. “Because of my head injury, the doct
ors told me I had to give up hockey after I came out of my coma. Your parents saw what happened to me and made the decision that they would never allow you to play it. One near fatal hockey accident in the Monbrisson family closed that door forever.”

  Alain’s cheeks went a ruddy color. “Natalie’s a Monbrisson, and she plays.”

  “She’s not your parents’ daughter.”

  The boy fought tears. It killed Rachel to see him this way.

  “I know how much you’d like to take it up, Alain. But I’m only carrying out what Bernard and Francoise wanted. Would you expect me to go against their wishes?”

  “I wish I’d died with them.”

  On that horrifying note Alain dashed out of the kitchen. A grim-faced Tris pushed himself away from the table and went after him.

  Natalie started to cry. “I didn’t know he couldn’t play hockey.”

  “Of course you didn’t.” Rachel squeezed her arm.

  “Mom? I think Alain hates me.”

  “No he doesn’t.”

  “Maybe I should go home with you.”

  Rachel moaned. For her daughter to say that, she was hurting for Alain so much it appeared she was ready to sacrifice her own happiness. This was turning into a nightmare.

  For once Rachel didn’t know how to answer her. “We’ll talk about it later. It’s getting late. Let’s do the dishes.”

  “Okay,” Natalie said in a mournful tone.

  They worked together in silence before Natalie dashed up the stairs to shower. After she got in her pajamas, Rachel sat on the side of the bed to talk to her.

  “Alain obviously needs more time to get used to you. Just remember that your father loves you desperately. I don’t think he could bear it if you left him now.”

  “I don’t want to leave him.” Her lower lip trembled. “Maybe you shouldn’t go home yet, Mom.”

  “No one’s going anywhere.”

  Tris had come in the bedroom. He shot Rachel a forbidding glance, defying her to say anything. “Given time, everything’s going to be all right, petite.”

  His gaze swerved to Natalie. The look in his eyes grew tender. “Alain didn’t mean what he said. One day soon he’s going to be happy again, so forget about what happened at the table. How about a kiss goodnight? We’ve got another big fishing day tomorrow.”

  Natalie smiled in relief and threw her arms around his neck.

  Rachel could tell there was more Tris had to say to their daughter. She left the room only to discover Alain waiting for her in her own bedroom. He was still dressed in the pants and shirt he’d worn fishing.

  “Hi,” she said quietly.

  His lips pressed together in greeting before he said, “I’m sorry for what happened at dinner.”

  Tris had to be the one responsible for this apology. Not wanting to undermine him, she sank down on the end of the bed, struggling to find the right words.

  “My father died two years ago. I know how hard it is to lose a parent. But Natalie and I realize it was twice as hard for you. There must be times when you can’t bear the pain.”

  She thought he nodded.

  “Do you know you’re a lot like your uncle?”

  Alain looked at her with a puzzled expression.

  Rachel smiled kindly at him. “You both want to make the other person happy. That’s why you called me in the first place, because you hoped if I told him about the past, his headaches would go away.

  “He, in turn, is trying to be the best father to you so your pain will go away.”

  His sober expression didn’t change. “Uncle Tris is Natalie’s father.”

  “He wants to be yours, too, but he’s afraid he’ll never be as wonderful a parent as your father was to you.”

  The boy eyed her suspiciously. “Did he tell you that?”

  “Yes.” In a manner of speaking. “When he came to see me and Natalie in Concord, the first thing he told us was how much he loved you. When he told Natalie he wanted her to come to Switzerland, he distinctly said, ‘I want you to live with me and Alain.’”

  His face fell. “He had to say that. It doesn’t mean anything.”

  “Then how come you haven’t been living with your grandparents since the funeral? From what I can tell, they love you to pieces.”

  A full minute must have passed while he dug the toe of his boot into the floor. “I don’t know,” he said at long last.

  “Maybe you should ask them.”

  He stuck around for another few seconds. Then, “Maybe I will.” In the next instant he was out the door like a shot.

  She got up to shower and get ready for bed. The more she thought about it, the more she admired Tris for taking on the responsibility of a twelve-year-old boy. Nephew or not, few single men were that unselfish with their time.

  For someone like Tris who ran such a huge business enterprise, it would have been natural to let his parents take over Alain’s care. He truly was a remarkable human being. She’d thought so when she’d first met him.

  Even at nineteen he’d seemed a breed apart from other guys. Looking back to that time on the ship, he’d been protective as well as loving.

  But when she never heard from him again, she began to doubt her own judgment in men. It was the reason why she’d been suspicious of any man who’d tried to get close to her since then.

  Who would have dreamed an older Tris would be back in her life, exhibiting the nobility she’d sensed in the younger man? A lesser person might have changed his mind about parenting Alain in order to win over his new-found daughter.

  Not Tris. He claimed both children without hesitation. How she loved him for it!

  No no no. Not loved. She couldn’t be falling in love with him again. She just couldn’t!

  Haunted by the prospect, she climbed under the covers determined to go home and start over with Steve. He’d been trying hard to break through her defenses. It was past time to let him.

  Tomorrow she would go fishing with Natalie. If everything didn’t fall apart, she would leave for Concord the next day. After setting her alarm, she lay back down willing sleep to come.

  To her surprise, she was awakened the next morning by a knock on her door. It couldn’t be Natalie. Her daughter would just have walked in. Maybe it was Alain.

  Rachel sat up in bed. “Come in.”

  Her heart thudded when she saw Tris in the aperture dressed casually for their outing. She drew the covers to her chin. “Am I holding everyone up?”

  “Have you seen Alain?” He answered her question with a question. His voice sounded several decibels lower than usual.

  She smoothed the hair out of her face, sensing his tension. “Not since last night.”

  “You mean at dinner?”

  “No. It was later while you were saying good-night to Natalie. I came in here to get ready for bed and discovered him waiting for me. He wanted to apologize.”

  “I’m surprised he followed through,” Tris said in a grave tone. “I went to his room a minute ago to get him up, but he wasn’t there. Neither Simone or Natalie has seen him this morning. If he didn’t come in here, then it means he took off and could be anywhere just to thwart me.”

  “Surely not to thwart you,” Rachel rushed to assure him. Pained by the agony in his voice she said, “I think he might have left early to go see his grandparents.”

  He moved closer to the bed. “What do you know that I don’t?”

  Without preamble she told him the essence of her conversation with Alain. “He said maybe he would go talk to them.”

  Tris pulled out his cell phone to call his parents. After a brief discussion he hung up. His features had taken on a chiseled cast.

  “What is it?”

  “He hasn’t been there.”

  “Then he’s probably on his way. He couldn’t have been gone long.”

  “Unless he left here last night after talking to you.”

  Grasping at any possibility that would comfort him she said, “I doubt that. He probably t
ook off for a friend’s house this morning. Does he ride a bike?”

  “All the time. But I checked in the lower storage room we use to keep our outdoor equipment. It’s still there,” he muttered before making several calls. After a half dozen brief exchanges he clicked off. She could tell by his somber look no one had seen Alain.

  A shudder rocked her body. “Let’s go look for him. Give me a minute to get dressed. Natalie and I will come with you. Is she ready?”

  “Yes. Right now she’s downstairs eating breakfast. We’ll meet you at the car.”

  The second he left the room she discarded her nightgown and threw on some jeans and a navy cotton top. There was little time to spend on her hair. She brushed it before tying it back with a matching scarf. After stepping into leather sandals, she turned off the alarm which was about to ring and left the room.

  When she stepped outside the chalet to join them, an overcast sky greeted her vision. Clouds obscured the mountains across the lake. She felt more humidity in the air and thought they might be in for a light rain later in the day. Nothing as heavy as the weight dragging down her heart.

  Tris helped her get in the back of the car. Natalie leaned over the seat to kiss her.

  “We’ll find him,” Rachel answered the question in her daughter’s eyes.

  Natalie looked at her father. “I bet he’s at Grand-mere Louise’s by now.”

  He patted her arm. “You’re probably right.”

  Except Rachel hadn’t heard his cell phone ring which meant his parents hadn’t found their grandson yet. She scanned the landscape in the hope she might see him.

  When they arrived at the house in Montreux, Louise was already in the courtyard waiting for them. They got out of the car to greet her. Natalie reached her first and hugged her.

  “I take it there’s been no sign of him, Maman.”

  She shook her head. “Marcel went down to the boathouse to see if he was there. But he just phoned to tell me the boat’s still tied up. Right now he’s searching for him along the shore.”

  A gaunt look overlay Tris’s striking features. “Then I’ll drive around to some of his favorite haunts.”

  Rachel could hardly bear to see him this upset. “I’ll go with you.” She turned to Louise. “Could Natalie stay with you?”