Saving Shadows

by Kathleen Brooks

  Gavin pushed through the door from his house into his office and then into the small lobby as the pounding and ringing of the bell continued. Gavin unlocked the door, flung it open, and found Turtle buck naked, holding a young snapping turtle over his crotch.

  “Save me doc!” Turtle yelled as he pushed his way into the clinic. Turtle was Gator’s younger cousin. He was skinny as a pole with mud brown hair cut short on top with not quite a rat-tail and not quite a mullet, but some cross of the two that hung down to his shoulder blades. It was a mullet tail. Or rat mullet. Either way it was redneck couture.

  “What happened?” Gavin asked as he flung the surgery room door open. Neither of them paid much attention to Ellery following close behind.

  “A turtle bit my ding-dong! What does it look like?” Turtle cried as he held onto the shell of the small snapping turtle.

  “Ellery, there’s a large metal bowl in the cabinet. Fill it was water, please,” Gavin ordered, not looking at her as he bent to examine the turtle latched onto Turtle’s little turtle. “It’s a young snapper. You’re lucky. He’s only three inches or so, probably not quite a year old.”

  “It doesn’t feel lucky!” Turtle snapped as Gavin grabbed the metal bowl from Ellery’s hands and began looking frantically around the office.

  “An adult could have bitten your penis off,” Gavin said calmly. He gathered his gloves, gauze, and the other supplies he would need to clean the wound.

  Turtle used one hand to hold the turtle and the other to hold the metal bowl as he lunged for the reflex hammer. Before Gavin could stop him he was holding the bowl over the turtle and his penis while banging away on the bowl with the reflex hammer.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Gavin yelled over the racket of metal bowl being hammered on as if Turtle had suddenly joined a heavy metal band.

  “My granny always said if a snapper latched onto you make loud noises to get it off.”

  Gavin grabbed the hammer and the bowl before Turtle did any more damage. “Old wives’ tale, Turtle. Just like the time she told you if you brush your teeth more than once a week you’ll wear the enamel off. Or that time she told you if you had sex standing up the girl wouldn’t get pregnant. Or the time she told you if you swallowed a watermelon seed a watermelon would grow in your stomach.”

  Gavin handed the bowl back to Ellery who was struggling not to laugh. She turned and busied herself filling it with water as Turtle’s brow creased in thought. “Maybe you’re right. I guess I should run anything medical by you first. Does that mean my teeth won’t be fall out by chewing gum?”

  “No, your teeth won’t fall out. But they will if you don’t brush them daily.” Gavin put on his gloves and leaned forward. “It appears he’s latched onto your foreskin. How do you feel about being circumcised?”

  Turtle went white as Ellery brought him the large bowl of water. “Let’s just see what kind of damage there is.” Gavin held the bowl up to the turtle and submerged the actual turtle and Turtle’s little turtle in the water. “Just hold still and relax.” Turtle shot him the finger. Gavin couldn’t blame him. It had to be hard to relax with a snapper hanging from your manhood.

  “So, you’re Gator’s cousin?” Ellery asked, trying to distract him. Turtle nodded. “Does that mean you handle turtles like Gator does with alligators?”

  “No. Why would you think that?”

  Gavin tried not to laugh as Ellery looked at him totally confused. “Then is Turtle your real name?”

  “Nah, it’s a nickname I got in high school.”

  “Does it have anything to do with a turtle?” Ellery asked.

  Turtle caught his breath on a sob and looked at the ceiling. “It has to do with my little turtle. It likes to come out of its shell to wave at my lady friends. But I might have to get a new name if I get the tip snipped.”

  Gavin saw the minute Ellery realized Turtle was a nickname for his uncircumcised penis and blushed red. She sputtered, trying to think of something supportive to say.

  “If anything it’ll make it look bigger. No more hiding for that turtle,” she finally said. “They’ll have to call you Big Turtle. Or maybe Tortoise.”

  “Really?” Turtle asked as the turtle let go, and Gavin quickly pulled the bowl away from Turtle and handed it to Ellery. “Empty this off the dock, will ya?” Ellery rushed away, carrying the turtle in the bowl as Gavin got down to business. “I can try to stitch it or I can cut it off—your call. If I stitch it, it’ll pull some and won’t look good. I also don’t know how painful it’ll be for you when you get an erection. You’re missing quite a chunk of skin.”

  Turtle collapsed onto the exam table holding the gauze to his penis and cried, “I just wanted to take a morning swim in the creek. I guess the turtle saw my goods dangling and thought it was food.”

  “I’ve read research that circumcised men last longer in bed,” Gavin reassured.

  “Cut it off,” Turtle said suddenly and decisively. “Maybe then I can find a woman.”

  Gavin shook his head. He didn’t know if it would help or not, but he was guessing a good workout routine to bulk up a little and showers inside instead of in creeks might go a long way to helping Turtle get a date. Right now, he smelled of pluff mud, and that was not a nice cologne.

  Ellery navigated her way around the kitchen after releasing the small turtle. She looked in the cabinets and took out two plates before moving to the refrigerator and finding some eggs and bacon. She wanted to make breakfast for Gavin while he attended to Turtle. It was the least she could do since he let her stay at his place, feeding and clothing her.

  She’d never thought of herself as the medical type, but she really enjoyed seeing Gavin in action. It made her realize how much more than the art world was out there. She’d been living and breathing art since her freshman year of college. She had friends, sure, but the more she met Gavin’s family, the more she realized they weren’t true friends. They were friends brought together by generations of debutante balls and marriages. They had a way of making a large world seem small, and Ellery had never taken the time to step out of that small circle. It felt as if she knew so many people, but she’d begun to realize she didn’t know them at all, just like they didn’t know her at all.

  “Penile emergency is over.” Gavin sighed as he walked into the kitchen and sniffed the air. “Smells great. Thank goodness you didn’t cook sausage links. I think my turtle is already suffering sympathy pains.”

  “Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?” Ellery said saucily before realizing what she’d just said. What was it about Gavin that made her feel so comfortable to blurt out all kinds of things her grandmother would have said were unladylike?

  “Yes, please,” Gavin answered instantly.

  Ellery laughed off the awkward moment even though her mind was squarely inside Gavin’s pants. “Here’s some breakfast. I thought you might be hungry.”

  “Starved. Why don’t we take it outside and have a picnic on the dock?”

  “Sounds great,” Ellery said with a smile. She picked up the food and carried it down the backyard and to the end of the dock. Gavin laid out a blanket and set the plates down. “I miss this.” She took a deep breath.

  “Bacon or the picnic?” Gavin asked as he filled her plate with food and set it down in front of her.

  “Relaxing. I haven’t done it in so long. I’ve always been pushing myself to climb the art gallery ladder and sell more, impress more, get better artists . . . It’s nice to feel the breeze on my face and enjoy a meal with a handsome man.”

  And it was nice. Gavin told her stories of his family and of being a doctor in the small town. He’d been offered a big shot job in Charleston, but he’d always wanted to come home.

  “Even after your parents moved to Florida?”

  “Yes, my cousins are like siblings to me, and this hometown is just that—home. I know everyone here. I’ve traded stitches for fresh cobbler. I’ve brought babies into the world and patched up their ski
nned knees as they’ve grown into little kids. I’ve held the hands of people I’ve known my whole life as they passed away. This is my town, my family. It’s where I belong.”

  “Have you ever thought of moving to Keeneston?”

  Gavin shook his head. “I actually just met them this past year. I hate to speak ill of the dead, but my great-grandmother was not very nice. She told my grandparents that their sister, Marcy, wanted nothing to do with them. So, I grew up knowing I had family out there, but nothing else. I met my cousin, Layne, at a medical conference in Charleston when I needed help with my best friend, Walker. You’ll meet his sister, Edie, soon.”

  “Oh, the one who was kidnapped, right?”

  Gavin nodded. “Right. Layne helped Walker after he was injured. She’s a physical therapist. It was when I met Layne that we realized we’d both been lied to for many years. Great-Grandma told my family Marcy wanted nothing to do with them while telling Marcy we didn’t want to have anything to do with her. It caused a generational split until I met Layne, and we figured out what had happened. When she married Walker, the whole family, including my grandfather and great-uncle, went to Keeneston to meet them. We’ve been growing close ever since.”

  “That’s horrible but wonderful at the same time. I wish I had family to turn to like you do. My grandmother raised me, and she passed away five years ago.”

  Ellery leaned back and closed her eyes as the sun fell on her face and she listened to Gavin’s family stories then shared some of her own.

  “Oh shoot,” Gavin said, suddenly jumping up. “I lost track of time.”

  “Do you need to be somewhere?” Ellery asked and started picking up the plates.

  “Church. You don’t miss church in Shadows Landing. Reverend Winston will show up at your door to see if you’re sick and then you end up feeling as if you were caught skipping school. Plus there’s the whole barbeque thing.”

  Ellery chased Gavin uphill toward the house. “What whole barbeque thing?”

  “Sundays are for townies only. Earl and Darius have a cook off. The person with the most votes gets that week’s prime advertisement spot in the paper and online. Do you have a hat to wear? Never mind. I’ll call Tinsley. She’ll meet us there,” Gavin called out as he raced upstairs. “Hurry and get ready. Wear your best dress.” And then his door slammed, and Ellery stood huffing and puffing from the sprint uphill, inside, and upstairs.

  Now, she was a good southern woman who knew how to dress for church, but a hat? Why did she need a hat? Ellery shook it off as she dumped the bag of clothes Harper let her borrow and got dressed.

  12

  “Here you go, Ellery,” Tinsley said, handing the work of art that was a hat to Ellery as Gavin practically propelled them inside the thick wooden doors of the church.

  “Thank you. This is beautiful.”

  “My Aunt Paige in Keeneston makes them. I bought a ton when I was up there last time. As you’ll see, the men may have a barbeque competition, but the women—”

  Tinsley didn’t need to finish for Ellery saw it. Hats were everywhere. Bright, colorful, large, small, feathered, or . . . was that an alligator head? Every woman there had on an anything-but-normal hat, and everyone was crammed as close as they could get to the front of the church. This was definitely not like her church where everyone competed for the last row.

  Trent waved them over to a pew right in the middle of the church. Gavin slid in and then Ellery, followed by Tinsley. Harper leaned forward and glared. “Do you know how hard it was to save these seats? What took you so long?”

  “Emergency patient.”

  Trent snorted. “Turtle made it here thirty minutes ago. He’s in the front row telling everyone about his new pleasure providing penis.”

  Wade leaned forward and whispered. “He won’t stop talking about it. He’s saying he’s like Spiderman. He was bitten but came out bigger and better than before.”

  Ellery and the rest of the Faulkners were trying not to laugh loudly in the historic church. Bells began to ring and everyone quieted down. Ellery took a moment to look at the stained glass windows casting colorful rays of light on the congregants. The doors opened on each side of the altar as a diverse group comprised of all different races, sexes, and ages filed in wearing white choral robes. Each robe had a different color sash running down each side of the zipper, turning the large group into its own rainbow of color.

  A young boy, his skin dark brown and his soft looking raven hair sticking up in a stylish pompadour, stepped forward with a curly red headed boy whose fair face was covered in freckles. You could hear a pin drop as everyone waited for the two boys to sing. They opened their mouths and sang to Jesus as the back doors opened and the reverend appeared. Everyone stood, some swayed with the music, some held their hands up to God, and others shook the reverend’s hand as he made his way down the aisle.

  Ellery couldn’t take her eyes from the choir as they began to slowly join in with the boys who couldn’t be older than twelve until she heard, “You’re new. Welcome.”

  Ellery turned and found the reverend looking right at her as he shook Tinsley’s hand. He was in his forties, his smooth umber skin was a warm dark yellow-brown. His almond shaped eyes were smiling as he reached his hand for hers.

  “Reverend Floyd Winston. Thank you for joining us this morning.”

  “Ellery St. John. I’m happy to be here.”

  Reverend Winston smiled, and it warmed her. There were times you just knew someone was kind, and that was the reverend. His clipper cut hair had soft coils on top before it was shaved down at the sides, which made him appear even more approachable. He wore a white robe, but the trim was made up of colorful pieces from all the different colors of the choir.

  “You are always welcome here, Miss St. John. Think of it as your sanctuary.”

  And then he was moving on to the rest of the parishioners. Reverend Winston made it to the altar right as the chorus finished their song. He shook hands with the two young singers and bowed his thanks to the choir before turning to the congregation.

  “Today I want to talk about our history, for we learn from it and we grow from it. Please be seated.” Ellery sat as the reverend began walking slowly across the altar, looking at each member of the church. “Shadows Landing was a place of sin.”

  Some members shook their heads in shame. Some nodded in agreement.

  “But it was always a place of Jesus. Even sinners can love Jesus and have a home here.”

  Someone shouted, “Amen” and Ellery couldn’t tear her gaze from the reverend as he continued to speak. “This church was built from sin and therefore we will never turn anyone away who seeks her sanctuary, sinner or not.”

  There was that word again. Sanctuary.

  “Inside our hallowed walls you can find safety. Safety for your soul and your person. No one can come into our church to remove a person seeking solace. To this day, in the Shadows Landing ordinances, those in need of sanctuary are safe the moment they pass through those doors. We may not have pirates in Shadows Landing anymore, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t those who need the protection of our Lord.”

  “Amen,” the crowd said with passion.

  “And it’s not just in this church that we find sanctuary. It’s this town. A town founded to protect pirates now protects each other. When Miss Ellen needed a new hip, who took her in?”

  “We did!” the church cried out.

  “When Miss Lydia’s husband is deployed, who helps take care of her children while we pray for his safe return?”

  “We do!”

  “When Mr. Gator lost his pinky to that alligator, who helped him heal?”

  “We did!”

  The reverend nodded his head, and his walking sped up. He was using his arms now as he talked, and people were beginning to stand up. “And when a woman is unjustly accused of a crime, where can she turn?”

  Ellery froze halfway up to her feet. Was he talking about her?

  “To us!�
��

  “Amen!” the reverend shouted as the choir launched into a stirring song about a sinner’s redemption. Although, she really wasn’t quite sure if she was a sinner or not. Either way, she’d take the protection they were offering her.

  “Reverend Winston knows everything that’s going on,” Gavin whispered as people sang. It didn’t matter if they were off key, they sang with their whole hearts.

  “But they’ll turn me over to the Charleston police if they find out I’m wanted,” Ellery said as she had to lean against Gavin and whisper into his ear.

  “The reverend has just deemed that you will be safe. The town will take you in and protect you. And as I told you before and Rev just said, the church is a sanctuary. If worse comes to worst, you come here. The police can’t drag you out. You may think you’re alone, but you’re not.”

  Ellery stood still as the music surrounded her. People were dancing where they stood, people were praying, people were singing, but she was not. She stood still, staring at the large cross, wondering if that was really true. She’d never felt so alone and yet so surrounded by love. She was troubled, rectifying the conflicting feelings. The music died down and the reverend walked right to her.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, I want to welcome Miss Ellery—a true symbol of strength. Dr. Faulkner found Miss Ellery unconscious in the water in the middle of the night and brought her back from death’s door.”

  “Hallelujah!” the chorus sang and Ellery almost jumped with surprise.

  “Miss Ellery is battling amnesia but is regaining more of her memory every day.”

  “Hallelujah!” Now the whole congregation joined in.

  “But the devil is at work. Someone tried to kill Miss Ellery, and they haven’t been caught yet. Instead they’re using their powers of evil to frame Miss Ellery for murder.”

  The congregation gasped. Someone cried out, and one of Lydia’s seven kids said “cool.”

  “But we won’t let the devil go unpunished because we will vanquish the shadows with our love.”