Through the Storm (Bellingwood Book 8)

by Diane Greenwood Muir

"Good morning, Sam. Are you and Jean planning to play cards tonight?"

  "We certainly are." He obviously turned away. "Jean? Where are we playing cards tonight?"

  A muffled sound came through the phone and he returned. "She says we're in Lehigh. Would you and Henry like to come along?"

  "No, we can't, but Sheriff Merritt was just here and he would like to join you all this evening. He'll bring his wife, Lydia. It's too much of a coincidence that Loren and Jim Todd were both killed two days after being at the same game night."

  "We would love to host the Sheriff and his wife," Sam said. "I've never met them, but Jean knows Lydia, so we'll make them feel at home."

  "Thank you. Is there something they should bring? A snack or anything?"

  "Tell them not to worry. Jean would be glad to take care of it and if they're coming as our guests, it is our responsibility to provide for them."

  "You don't know Lydia Merritt very well, do you?"

  "Not as well as I know my Jean. But we insist. Please tell her that. Does this mean that one of us might be the murderer? That sounds quite intriguing."

  Polly chuckled. "I don't know. I suspect that Aaron simply wants to ask some questions to see what people might remember."

  "I'll be sure to introduce him around. Does he know that there was another group with us as well?"

  "I told him. But, this is a good place for him to start."

  "Well, we look forward to getting to know them better. Please assure Mrs. Merritt that they need to bring nothing else."

  "Thank you Sam. I'll let her know. Thank you again for the wonderful evening and the terrific leftovers. We enjoyed your wife's cooking again last night."

  "You're a sweet girl. I already got your thank you note from the post office this morning. That wasn't necessary."

  "I was taught as a very young child to write thank you notes. The woman who raised me would have my head if I didn't express my appreciation for such generosity."

  "Tell the Sheriff we look forward to seeing him and his wife."

  "Thanks again, Sam."

  Polly hung up. If he wasn't such a nice man, she'd be greatly put off by his chauvinism. Jean hadn't seemed too terribly bothered by it the other night. That reminded Polly. She'd never said anything to Henry about how great he was helping Jean in the kitchen. Sam had ignored the entire thing, never offering to help. Polly had gotten herself tucked into a corner so she couldn't, but Henry ... wonderful Henry ... had dug right in and taken care of things.

  "I think you're wonderful," she texted to him.

  "Well, thank you. I couldn't agree more. Why do you say that today?"

  "You're not a chauvinist pig."

  "Well! I have no idea where this has come from, but thank you again!"

  "I love you and will see you tonight."

  "I love you too. If you need me to clean or do laundry or something to keep up appearances, just let me know."

  Polly texted back a smiley face and dialed Lydia.

  "Good morning sweet girl," Lydia said. "My husband says that we're bailing you out tonight."

  "He did not."

  "Yes, that is what he said until I pinned him down."

  "He's a brat."

  "And that's why I love him. Did you talk to Jean?"

  "I talked to her husband. He says that you and Jean know each other so you'll be able to find them tonight."

  "Sure. We've been on committees together in the past. I know who she is. Am I supposed to take anything?"

  "No, apparently they're going to be your hosts and Jean would be upset if you didn't allow her to take care of it."

  "Then I'll let her do just that. I'm in Dayton today with the twins while Marilyn takes the baby to the doctor."

  "Is everything okay?"

  "Oh yes. Just a regular checkup. When they get back, we're all going to ..." The pitch of her voice went up a register and Polly could tell she was speaking to one of the kids. "take a walk to the park and have a picnic. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

  "It sounds like fun and you sound busy."

  "I'm never too busy for you, dear. But thank you for calling."

  The phone went dead before Polly could say goodbye, so she just smiled and put it back on her desk. What a strange morning. No, if she thought about it, this was par for the course.

  Sylvie came back into her office. "Are you ready to go?"

  "It's ten thirty already?"

  "I'm a little early, but I have to get out of here. I'm so nervous, I can't get anything done in the kitchen."

  Polly swiped her phone and looked at the time. "You know that we're going to be really early. It's only ten o'clock."

  "We'll have coffee or something. I can't sit still."

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  "Are you up there, Polly?" Henry's voice called up from the bottom of the back stairs. "Polly, what's going on?"

  "I don't know what you mean," she responded sweetly. She turned to Rebecca. "Whatever could he possibly mean?"

  Rebecca giggled. "I don't know. Maybe he just wants to tell you that he loves you."

  "Polly!" Henry crested the stairs and his footsteps across the office and the media room were filled with purpose. "Polly. What have you done?"

  The two girls looked up at him from the sofa.

  "Why, whatever are you talking about?" Polly asked.

  "You know what I'm talking about. Where is your dad's truck?"

  "Oh, it's in Boone. We'll need to pick it up on Monday."

  "Okay. That answers that. But were you going to tell me about the new truck in the garage?"

  "New truck? It's not a new truck. I would never buy a new truck without talking to you first."

  "But you'd buy a used truck."

  Polly coyly batted her eyes at him and winked at Rebecca. "Well, maybe. Are you planning to get all macho and yell at me in front of these innocent ears?" She placed her hands over Rebecca's ears and the little girl giggled again.

  "No, I'm not going to yell at you. But did you really buy a used truck without talking to me?"

  "Kinda and not really." Polly pulled her hands back into her lap. "I have it for the weekend. I thought you and Nate could look at it and test drive it and if we like it, then I'm buying it."

  "I thought you were going to buy something more mom-like."

  "Mom-like?" She raised her eyebrows at him.

  "Not a truck. You already have a truck."

  "But my truck only holds three people and that's only if one of those people is a little people. This truck has a big extended cab. I can put lots of people in there. And stuff. Look at all of the stuff I can put in it."

  "You really want a truck?"

  "Sit," she said. He sat.

  "I really do. I thought about it and I'm not ready to give up my truck. It's a 2012 and it's a great deal and low mileage and," Polly poked her lower lip out at him, "can I have this truck, daddy? I'll let you drive it sometimes."

  "Stop it," he laughed. "Are you sure this is what you want?"

  "I am. When you and Nate finish with those Woodies in two or three years, they will be fun to drive around town, but I want something comfortable for long trips. And something that I can put kids into with seatbelts in every seat. You should see all of the fun stuff. Heated and cooled seats, a DVD player in the back seat and all sorts of other things I haven't figured out yet."

  She reached behind her back and pulled out the manual. "I brought this up so I could read all about it and learn what I'm supposed to do and everything."

  "You're going to read the manual?"

  "Yes. Out loud to you at night before we go to sleep. Doesn't that sound romantic?"

  "I'm swooning. What are you going to do with your dad's truck?"

  Polly took a breath. "I don't know. I can't sell it. Maybe Eliseo would like to use it around here. It would be great for hauling things and it has enough horsepower to pull a horse trailer if we ever get one of those."

  "Because we're taking horses on trips now?"
>
  "You never know. I just think I'd like there to be an extra truck on site."

  "You're crazy and I love you. You're going to try to sell that truck to Eliseo for a dollar, aren't you?"

  "That would be a lousy business decision, wouldn't it?" She poked Rebecca. "I think maybe ten dollars is a better deal, don't you?"

  Rebecca giggled again, her eyes going back and forth between the two adults as they discussed Polly's purchase.

  "How did you make this happen so fast?" Henry asked.

  "I made Sylvie drive through the lot with me before she met with the people at school, and then I found the one I wanted. It was right there. Almost as if it was waiting for me. So, she dropped me off and I sat down with them and made a deal. Rebecca and I picked it up after we saw her mom."

  "So you were in on this, little girl?" Henry spun on Rebecca, his eyes laughing, his tone quite serious.

  "I'm sorry, Mr. Meanie. She told me to protect her from you."

  "Wait. How did that happen?"

  "What do you mean?" Polly asked as innocently as possible.

  "How did she figure out I wasn't scary?"

  Polly stood up and hugged him. "Because you're about as scary as Jessie's stuffed purple horse."

  Her face fell and when she looked at Rebecca, the girl's shoulders drooped.

  "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything about her. I'm sure she's fine. She'll let us know where she is when it's the right time."

  "I wish she would call," Rebecca said.

  "So do I." Polly turned back to Henry. "Are you taking a shower before we go out tonight or were you a lazy boy today and still fresh as a daisy?"

  He started to raise his arm over her head and glanced down at Rebecca. "I'll take a shower. You two be good and don't buy anything else like a boat or mobile home while I'm gone."

  "Whew, we lived through that one," Polly said, dropping back down on the sofa beside Rebecca. "Thanks for standing up for me. I was worried."

  "No you weren't."

  Polly chuckled. "You're right. I wasn't. Do you have everything you need for your sleepover at Eliseo's?"

  "Right here." She patted her backpack.

  "And you have your sketches and drawings for tomorrow morning?"

  "In here, too. I'm nervous."

  "About Beryl?"

  "What if she doesn't think I'm any good?"

  "Honey, you are eleven years old. I've seen how you draw and you are very good. Beryl is going to teach you things that will make you better."

  "She's kind of crazy."

  "She's a lot crazy, but she will love you and you'll love her."

  "Maybe I should take Andrew. He can sit and read while I'm there."

  Polly turned to face Rebecca. "There is nothing to be afraid of with Beryl. You've seen her plenty of times and though she's a little eccentric, she is a wonderful woman and she is going to be lots of fun. I promise that she won't wear a big black hat on the top of her head or ride a broom around the building or anything like that. She doesn't put children in the oven and cook them for later and she doesn't turn children into cats or mice or anything else."

  "No Andrew?"

  "No Andrew. This one is all yours. All by yourself. You're going to have a blast. Okay?"

  Rebecca blew out a dramatic sigh. "Okay, fine. I'm still nervous."

  "Here's what I'll do. Andrew and I will show up early in my new truck. If you hate it and have to leave, we'll be sitting in Beryl's driveway, ready to haul you away."

  "Really?"

  "Of course. But I'll bet that's the last time I have to show up early. That's how confident I am that you are going to have a great time."

  "Thanks."

  Henry came back out, dressed and ready to go. "So, are we taking your truck?"

  "And I'll even let you drive."

  "Oh, goody, goody," he said flatly. "I've never driven a truck before."

  "Fine then. You don't get to if you're going to be a poop about it. Come on Rebecca. We'll make him sit in the back seat."

  She glanced up at Polly. "Airbags, remember?"

  "Well, both of you can sit in the back seat, then."

  Polly scooped up her keys and led the procession down the back steps into the garage. When Henry tried to take the keys from her, she snatched them and pointed to the back door. "You heard me. Back seat for bad boys."

  Henry lifted Rebecca in and handed her backpack to her, then trotted around the truck to the back seat of the driver's side. "You know I can torment Polly from here, don't you?" he said to the girl.

  "But she's driving and you have to be safe."

  "The two of you are no fun at all. I don't think I like having girls gang up on me."

  Polly looked in the rear view mirror and stuck her tongue out at him.

  Jason was in Eliseo's front yard when Polly drove in and walked over to her truck as nonchalantly as possible. "New truck?" he asked, when she opened the door.

  Henry got out and went around to open Rebecca's door.

  "You want to sit in it?" Polly asked.

  "Can I?"

  "It's not mine yet, so I can't let you drive it, but if Henry and Nate check it out and tell me it's a good buy, it's mine on Monday." She held the door while he climbed in.

  He ran his hand across the dashboard and flicked the turn signal. "This is really nice. What are you going to do with the red truck?"

  "I think it will be a Sycamore House truck for now. We'll see what happens to it after that."

  "Maybe Mom would let me buy it when I can drive."

  "That's a couple of years away. Who knows, you might find something even better. And maybe you shouldn't push your luck right now."

  He looked at her in shock. "I wasn't going to say anything to her now. Do you think I'm crazy?" He put his hand on the keys. "Can I at least turn it on?"

  "I promise, next week you can drive it."

  "Okay fine." He handed her the keys and climbed back down.

  Andrew and Eliseo came outside and Jason said, "Look at her cool new truck!"

  Andrew nodded and ran over to Rebecca. "Put your bag on the front porch and come out to see the chickens."

  "I just saw them yesterday," she said.

  "But come on!"

  Rebecca gave Polly an eyeroll and followed him behind the house.

  "What do you think, Eliseo?" Polly asked.

  "Nice truck. Couldn't bear the thought of being short to the ground again, huh?"

  "I really couldn't and come on, it isn't just men who drive trucks around here, is it?"

  "Usually," Henry laughed. "But not my wife. She'll push 'em all off the road." He put his hand on Eliseo's back. "My truck is still bigger though." He turned around and stuck his tongue out at Polly. "Now let's go inside and you can show me what you found in the cubby hole."

  This left Polly and Jason alone and all of a sudden he began acting awkward, his head down, a slow shuffle in his step.

  "What's up, Jason?"

  "Mom talked to the school today."

  "Yeah. I went with her. That's when I got my truck."

  "Everybody knows what happened."

  "It's not easy to have these things out in the open, is it?"

  "They're going to bring those guys in to talk to them. Something about bullying and harassment."

  "You don't want them to, do you?"

  He looked at her. It struck her that they were the same height now and my goodness, but he was getting big. "Now I'm going to have to listen to them call me a tattle tale and whiny kid."

  "Jason, look at yourself." She put her hands on his shoulders. "You aren't a little kid any longer. You've already proven that you can take them down and that you're willing to take responsibility for your actions. Who cares what that single group of kids thinks or says?"

  "But everyone else hears them say it."

  "So?"

  "Then everyone will think I'm a tattle tale."

  "So?"

  "I'll never have any friends."

/>   Polly let her hands fall and took his hand in hers, drawing him toward the front porch. "Is that the worst case scenario?"

  "I suppose," he said, a little sullenly.

  "Do you really believe that's going to happen or do you think that you might be blowing things a little out of proportion."

  "You just don't know what it's like in high school."

  "Yeah. That's right. Because I jumped right from elementary school to adulthood."

  "You know what I mean."

  She stepped up onto the first step and looked down at him. "Here's what I'm going to tell you and it's going to sound harsh, but you need to listen to me. You can't stop those kids from saying things to you. But you can stop your reaction to them. You are not their victim. You can laugh along with them, you can take the high road, you can know that you are better than their behavior. You can stand up for others who are being bullied by them. You can stand in front of them and let them wail on you as much as they want and take it, because Jason, they can't really hurt you. What happened on Monday hurt you, but only because you gave into them and lowered yourself to their behavior. I promise that they will get tired of it at some point. It might take all year long, but every day when you come home and talk to your mom or to me or to Eliseo, or dare I even say it, to your little brother who adores you, you will hear from us that we love you and think you are wonderful. You have to remember that."

  Polly winked at him, "Because if you look like you are starting to forget it, I'm going to start sending little happy post-it notes in your school work telling you how wonderful you are."

  "You wouldn't!" Jason looked up at her in shock.

  "Of course I wouldn't. That would be horrible now, wouldn't it!"

  "Do you really think I can do this?"

  She took his arm and drew him up to the next step. "You have such great compassion inside of you. There are going to be kids who need you to stand up for them as you go through these next four years. I'm going to ask you to watch out for them. Show your brother and all of those kids that it doesn't take a bully to stand up to a bully. Be the wall for them. Don't react. Don't take it personally. Just be solid and strong. You're already those things. Now you just have to stop reacting every time something falls apart."

  "That's what Mom said. But she didn't say it like you."