“Oh dear,” said Alice. “In that case, we should be thankful that we’re not.”
Mark laughed. “Well, I’m sure that Adam will cool off. If not, I may go out to look for him and see if we can iron this thing out. I have to admit that I don’t much care for his attitude, and you’re right about his appearance.”
“Don’t forget that he’s probably depressed,” Alice reminded him. “That could explain everything.”
“I know that’s true, but you just have to deal with grief and keep on keeping on.”
“Maybe that works for some people,” said Alice, “but it’s not like that for everyone. Some people need professional help.”
Just then she noticed another familiar car approaching the inn. “Oh no!”
“Who is it?”
“Laura’s parents,” gasped Alice. “Oh dear, what on earth am I going to tell them?”
As the car drew closer, Alice felt her knees growing weaker. “This is so awful, Mark.” She stared down at the ground, almost afraid to even see the Winstons face to face. Oh, what will I say? she thought.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’m here with you. Somehow we’ll—” he paused. “Say, do they have two daughters, Alice?”
“No.” She looked up in time to see Mrs. Winston happily waving from the front seat and Laura, glum as usual, sitting in the back. “That’s her,” said Alice. “That’s Laura!”
Mark smiled. “So, all’s well that ends well.”
“What about Adam?” she asked in a meek voice, wondering which was worse, a missing blind girl or a brokenhearted, depressed boy. God help me, she prayed silently as they walked back to the house. And help Adam too.
Louise showed Mark to his room while Alice returned to the kitchen to help Jane. While they worked, she told Jane the whole story about Adam and, finally, how she and Mark had practically accused him of kidnapping Laura. “I feel so bad about it,” she confessed. “Adam must despise me.”
“Sounds like that kid needs some help,” said Jane as she seasoned the gravy.
“That’s what I told Mark.” Alice unwrapped a stick of butter and set it in the butter dish. “Even so, I wish I had handled the Laura situation better.” She shook her head. “I don’t know how the Winstons came in and got Laura and left the inn without my hearing.”
“Well, you said that you were sewing. It’s possible they came while your machine was running.”
“I suppose.”
“With both the Langleys and the Winstons going out for dinner tonight, we could eat in the dining room,” said Jane.
“Do you want me to set it up in there?”
“It’s up to you, Alice.” Jane checked on the oven. “Oh, by the way, I got conned into inviting Aunt Ethel for dinner tonight.”
Alice sighed. “Why does that not surprise me?”
“Yes, she can’t wait to get her hands on your ‘young man’ as she calls Mark. She wants to hear all about his veterinary adventures.”
“How did she persuade you?”
“She has the most beautiful daylilies in her side yard, and I’ve been begging her to share some with me. They’re an old-fashioned variety that’s hard to find. So this afternoon, she traipsed over and announced that she was just dividing the clump and asked if I would like some. Well, I jumped up from planting onions and ran over to her house, and while I was putting my lilies into a box, she mentioned how she hoped she’d get to see Mark when he arrived and was I planning some special dinner?”
“So she bribed you with daylilies.”
“Basically.”
“Leave it to Aunt Ethel.”
“At least she’s bringing dessert.”
“Let me guess,” said Alice.
“Peach tarts,” they said simultaneously.
“Mark will be pleased,” said Alice. “He loves Auntie’s tarts.”
It was not long before they were all seated around the dining room table. “Isn’t this nice?” said Mark as he looked at the women surrounding him. He offered to say the blessing. “For dear friends and good food and fine fellowship, dear Lord, we give You thanks. Amen.”
Alice looked up and glanced at the one empty place. “I wish Adam could’ve joined us.”
“No luck in your search for him?” said Jane as she passed the rolls.
“I scoured the town,” said Mark as he ladled some gravy onto his meat. “If he was in Acorn Hill, I’m sure I would’ve found him.”
“Do you think he went home?” asked Louise.
Alice glanced uncomfortably at Mark. Louise and Ethel had yet to hear all the details about their young guest. Perhaps they didn’t need to. Certainly, it wasn’t Alice’s place to inform them. Not, at least, while Mark was here.
“As far as I know,” began Mark, “Adam has been living in his car.” Then he went on to explain about the death of Adam’s parents and his grandmother’s recent worries. “His parents left insurance money for him, but it’s tied up in a trust fund controlled by the grandmother. She told me that the money is only to be used for college and living expenses until he’s twenty-five, but when Adam dropped out of college, she froze all funds. And now Adam is on his own.”
“Oh, what a terrible thing, losing his parents and so suddenly,” said Louise. “The poor boy must be suffering.”
“My parents died when I was young,” said Ethel. “If it hadn’t been for my brother, these girls’ dear father, well, I don’t know what would’ve become of me. He and his sweet wife took me right into their home. Do you girls remember that?” she asked. “I mean Alice and Louise. Of course, Jane hadn’t been born yet.”
Louise and Alice nodded. Ethel took a bite of her Yorkshire pudding, then continued. “I did what I could to help with the girls. And then after Madeleine died, well, I was glad to be there to help Daniel and his three motherless girls through their time of need.”
“You really do need family at a time like that,” said Alice. “Unfortunately for Adam, he only has his grandmother for family. Amy’s only sister died quite young from leukemia and Gregory was an only child.”
“It is good that he has you,” said Louise.
“That’s right,” said Ethel. “His parents were wise to pick such a responsible person for their son’s godfather.”
Mark laughed. “I’m not so sure about that. At the time, even though I was in my forties, I would not have described myself as anything that resembled responsible. But Gregory and I had always been good friends. We’d been as close as brothers growing up. Been rowdy college boys together. I had even been the best man at their wedding about ten years before Adam was born.”
“Wow,” said Jane, “that was a long wait for a baby.”
“Yes,” said Mark, “there was some problem about getting pregnant, and they were ecstatic when Adam came along. I still remember the christening. You never saw prouder parents. But honestly, I think their choice of me as godfather had more to do with friendship than anything else. I certainly had no experience with kids. To be perfectly honest, I didn’t even know what the role of a godparent was. I’m not sure that I do now. Oh, I went to Adam’s christening, and I always send him gifts for birthdays, Christmas, special occasions. But other than that? I’m really not sure.”
“Well, when Father did baptisms,” began Alice, “he would always point out that godparents were to be responsible for a child’s spiritual upbringing should a parent be unable to perform that duty.”
Mark’s eyes grew wide. “Seriously?”
“My father took it very seriously,” said Alice. “He would question the godparent to discern if they were really willing to commit to this important role. He would remind them that, while it was an honor to be chosen for a godparent, it was also a big responsibility that should last a lifetime.”
Mark nodded. “That’s a big commitment.”
“Well,” said Ethel in a time-to-change-the-subject tone, “did I tell you girls about Lloyd’s latest idea to have a barbecue this year?” She launched into a
long-winded story about how Lloyd Tynan had met this Southern gentleman at a mayor’s conference, and the man had the most wonderful recipe for ribs. “And Lloyd has invited him up here so that he can teach Lloyd how to make it, and then Lloyd is going to put on a barbecue that not one of his guests will ever forget.”
Jane and Alice had just begun clearing the table when Adam walked in. Alice went over to him. “Oh, Adam,” she said, “we’re so glad you made it.” She pointed to the unused place setting. “There’s still lots of roast beef and I can reheat the gravy and the Yorkshire pudding and—”
“You don’t have to be nice to me just because Mark is here.”
Alice felt her eyes growing large. “Well, that’s not it. I just feel very sorry for the way I assumed that Laura would be with you. I hope that you’ll forgive me.”
“So she showed up?”
Alice thought she saw the slightest flicker of interest in his eyes. As small as it was, it gave her hope. “Yes. It turned out that she’d been with her parents.”
“Come and join us,” said Mark. “Jane is an excellent cook.”
“Yes,” said Ethel, and she launched into a history of Jane’s culinary achievements as a chef in San Francisco.
Jane chuckled as she turned on the stove to reheat the gravy. “Aunt Ethel’s tales get better with every telling, don’t they? To hear her talk, you’d think that Wolfgang Puck would be knocking down my door.”
“Next thing we know, you’ll be a featured chef on a cooking show.” Alice turned away from Jane as she put the pudding into the microwave to warm. She did not want to admit it, but Adam’s comment that she was being nice because of Mark still stung.
Jane chuckled. The microwave dinged, and Alice got a potholder to remove the dish.
“He’s getting to you, isn’t he?” said Jane as she refilled the gravy boat with hot gravy.
“Who?”
“Adam.” Jane came over to Alice. “He may have lost his parents, Alice, but that doesn’t mean he had to lose his manners too. I wouldn’t let him talk to me like that.”
“But I couldn’t …”
“I realize that you and Mark have some things to figure out,” she continued, “and while it’s none of my business, you better figure out this thing with Adam too. A kid like that could drive a real wedge into any relationship.”
Alice did not respond since they were already heading back into the dining room with the reheated food. Now Mark was regaling everyone with an exciting story about piranhas and how an Amazon River guide had lost some fingers to the feisty fish. Alice felt relieved that Adam seemed mildly interested in the graphic tale, but she noticed the chilly look he gave her when she set the warmed Yorkshire pudding before him.
She told herself that Adam was still irked about her assumption that he had something to do with Laura’s disappearance. And she could not blame him. Even so, she felt it might be deeper than that. She wondered if he resented her relationship with Mark. Perhaps he felt that this was a time when he needed someone like Mark in his life, but then there was Alice just getting in the way.
Chapter Ten
Shall we have dessert in the living room?” suggested Louise. “Then perhaps Mark would show us some of his photos of his recent trip.”
“Don’t twist my arm,” teased Mark.
“That’s an excellent idea,” said Alice as she picked up a serving dish. “Why don’t all of you head on in there while I take care of these—”
“Nothing doing.” Jane grabbed the dish from Alice. “I’ve got everything under control.”
“And I can help Jane,” said Ethel as she picked up Mark’s dinner plate and headed toward the kitchen.
Alice knew her sister would not be pleased by this offer, since Ethel had a tendency to talk more than help, but Jane simply smiled and continued to clear the table. Alice suspected that her loquacious aunt would rather be in the center of the limelight than share it with something as mundane as travel photos.
They began working their way through the photos, which Mark had nicely arranged in albums with notations explaining them. Alice was pleased to see that Adam actually seemed to be interested. He even asked Mark several rather intelligent questions that began to give her hope for this young man.
“If you ever give up veterinary work,” said Alice as she studied a particularly lovely shot of a sunset on a river, “you could consider photography, Mark. Some of these are worthy of framing.”
“Well, thank you,” said Mark. “I was afraid that I took too many photos. But I figured I might never get back there again.”
“Why not?” asked Adam.
Mark smiled. “I guess because I’m getting old.”
“Aren’t you about the same age as my dad was?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, that’s not that old. Old is my grandma’s age. She’s like ninety, I think.”
“Yes,” said Mark. “I’m not as old as your grandmother, though sometimes I feel like it.”
“Here comes dessert,” sang out Ethel as she and Jane came in bearing trays laden with small peach tarts buried under miniature mountains of whipped cream.
“I hope everyone wanted whipped cream,” said Jane, “since Aunt Ethel got a bit carried away.”
Ethel laughed. “Well, Jane has all the best toys in her kitchen. Her fancy whipped cream maker was so much fun that I just couldn’t stop myself.”
After everyone had been served, Ethel sat next to Mark and told him in explicit detail about her latest ailment, a bad bunion on her left foot. Apparently, she thought an animal doctor should know about human medicine as well. The others brought Jane up to date on the photos, and Adam even explained a few things to her.
“Wow, Adam,” she said. “You seem to know a lot about faraway places. Have you traveled a lot?”
“No. But I’ve read a lot about travel and I used to think I’d like to go around the world.”
“Used to?” asked Jane.
He shrugged and looked down at his empty dessert plate. “Yeah, back when I was a little kid.”
“But don’t you still think it would be exciting as a grownup?” she asked.
He seemed to consider this. “Maybe.”
“Maybe if you finished college,” suggested Alice, “then perhaps you could get a job that—”
“Look,” Adam pointed his finger at Alice, and the room grew suddenly quiet. “I don’t need you telling me what to do, okay?”
Alice actually started, then nodded. “That’s fine.” She quickly stood and busily gathered several empty plates as if that was just what she had intended to do. Then she headed for the door, but not soon enough to miss Mark’s attempt at correcting his discourteous godson.
“That’s not a very respectful way to speak to an elder,” he began in a quiet voice.
Fortunately, she was down the hall before Adam could respond. One thing was clear to her, painfully clear: Adam disliked her. She knew it was not her imagination. Furthermore, despite her good intentions, she did not like him. Perhaps that was the most disturbing discovery of the evening.
She heard someone behind her and, worried Mark might be coming to apologize for Adam’s impolite behavior, she hastened her step. She did not want him to see her like this, not with these hot tears running down her flushed cheeks, but her hands were full and all she could do was hurry to the kitchen and hope to dry her face on a tissue before he noticed.
She was relieved to discover it was Jane who had followed.
“Oh, Alice,” Jane said when she saw the tears. She set aside Alice’s stack of plates and gave her sister a big hug.
“I feel so silly,” muttered Alice as they stepped apart.
“That Adam,” Jane shook her head. “He was just making me start to like him and then he goes and says something as dimwitted as that.”
“Oh, he’s just unhappy,” said Alice as she reached for a tissue to dry her tears.
“And he wants you to be unhappy with him? Misery lo
ves company?”
Alice shrugged. “I think he may resent me.”
“Of course he does,” said Jane. “He probably sees Mark as someone who was going to rescue him and you as someone who might mess things up.”
Alice nodded. “Yes, that’s what I was thinking too.”
“Just be patient with him.”
“I’m trying.”
Jane gently rubbed Alice’s back. “I know you are, sweetie. You’re doing far better than I would be under the same circumstances.”
Jane’s sympathy only made Alice cry harder. “Goodness,” she said as she used another tissue to dry her eyes, “I don’t know what’s wrong with me tonight. I feel as if I’m falling apart.”
“I know what’s wrong,” said Jane. “And I’m going to give you the same remedy that you once gave me.”
Alice soon found herself excused from the evening’s gathering. Before she could protest, Jane had escorted her up the back stairway to her room where the door was quickly closed to shut out the sounds of piano music coming from down below.
“Don’t worry about a single thing,” promised Jane as she filled Alice’s tub with hot, lavender-scented water. “I will tell everyone that you’ve come down with a migraine or perhaps something even more exotic. What was that disease that Mark was telling us about?”
“Oh no!” Alice certainly hoped that Jane would not lie on her behalf. Then she touched her forehead. “Actually, my head is throbbing a bit.”
“See,” said Jane as she lit a scented candle, then reached into her pocket to produce several homemade truffles, which she artistically arranged along the side of the tub. “Take these and call me in the morning.”
Despite her misery, Alice laughed. “You’re an angel.”
“Hey, I learned from the best.” She handed Alice her bathrobe. “Now, I want you to just relax and totally empty your head. Hey, do you have a good book?”
Soon, Alice was steeping in bubbles, munching on chocolates and slowly erasing the day’s worries as she got lost in her mystery. When she finally climbed into bed, she realized that sometimes the best way to deal with a bad situation was simply to escape from it—at least temporarily, for she was no fool and she knew that she would not be able to escape forever. She would deal with those challenges tomorrow, but for tonight, she would simply pray and go to sleep.
Memories from Acorn Hill Page 7