The Cast Net

by Mille West

  “Charles and Marian have been very nice to me.”

  “They’re two of my best friends.”

  She studied his face for a moment and asked, “Cooper, where do you go to church?”

  “I don’t attend church.”

  “I went to a church a few miles from here last Sunday, but I’d like to find a church that has a more contemporary service.”

  “I’m sorry; I can’t be of help to you.”

  “The church I attended last Sunday was very nice. After the service, a lady greeted me and when I told her I was working with you, she said your mother had been very involved with charity work.”

  “My mother spent a lot of her time trying to help the poor and less fortunate; the educational foundation was founded with her own funds. She also helped start a medical clinic out here in this rural part of Charleston County. I broke my arm when I was twelve years old, and my parents took me to Charleston to have the arm attended to. The emergency room doctor, Williston Devereux, impressed my mother. Julia was able to convince her to move out here and start a medical clinic. That was back in the 1960s. In those days, this was a sparsely populated area.”

  “This is still a rural area.”

  “Not like it used to be. Later this week, I’m going to Williston’s clinic to donate blood. I count her as one of my best friends, and I’d like for you to get to know her. Would you like to go with me to donate blood Friday morning?”

  “Yes, but I’ve never given blood before.”

  “Look at all the firsts you’re experiencing. You help someone else when you donate blood.” There was a pause, and then Cooper asked, “What happened to your father?”

  “He had a massive coronary and died in his early forties. It was his first heart attack, and it was unexpected, because he was young and fit. I suppose these things can happen to anyone.”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  After dinner, Cooper walked Mills to her cottage explaining that he had to be in Charleston early the next morning. “My cousins, Anne, Blair, and Zack, are going to come out this weekend to hunt. Anne is Jeff’s sister. Please join us over the weekend if you don’t have plans.”

  “I’d love to join you and meet your cousins.”

  He said good night and walked down the row of camellias back to his home.

  Before bed, Mills walked to the riverfront to listen to the sounds of the night and the flowing waters of the Edisto. On her way back to her cottage, she could hear Cooper playing the piano. She stopped to watch him through the window.

  Eventually, he stopped playing the song and sat at the piano bench, wiping tears from his face. For a few moments, Mills could not take her eyes off of him as she observed his heart-wrenching solitude, but then he rose from the piano, closed the keyboard cover, and left the room.

  She slowly walked back to her cottage, saddened by what she had witnessed.

  The next morning, Mills prepared the invitations for mailing, but before going to the post office, she stopped by the kitchen to speak with Marian.

  Marian made Mills a cup of hot tea and they began to talk. “I’ve got the invitations to Cooper’s oyster roast finished, and I’m going to Alston Station to mail them. I noticed that a number of his guests had titles—like ‘the honorable Mr. Smith’—before their names.”

  “Cooper knows lots of folks from all sorts of backgrounds. He took over where Miss Julia left off.”

  “What happened to Cooper’s mother?”

  “Cooper retired from the Air Force and accepted a job as an airline pilot. The company went out of business, but during that time period, Miss Julia started to become forgetful. Miss Jenny, her sister, eventually told Cooper about her problem. I’m afraid that memory loss issues struck her aggressively.”

  “How sad,” Mills said.

  “Cooper came back here with Elise, and for the next three years, he devoted a great deal of his time to taking care of his mother. It was the saddest thing to see. Her personality changed; she wasn’t the same woman. The way a man takes care of his mother says a lot about his character. The doctors said that she suffered from a type of dementia—if you have not seen for yourself what it can do to a person, you really have no idea how horrible the disease is. Cooper, bless his heart, did everything he could for her.”

  “Cooper didn’t say anything about her illness to me.”

  “He rarely discusses his problems. In fact, I can’t remember seeing him get angry about anything. The Lord must have given him the strength to bear hardship, because he has been through enough of it.”

  The telephone rang and after Marian answered it, she let Mills know that she was going to be preoccupied for a while. Mills waved to her as she departed for Alston Station.

  Housed in a small cottage-style building, the post office had light-blue shutters and a metal roof. A middle-aged postal worker with sandy hair pinned on top of her head greeted Mills as soon as she entered the building. “I see that it’s time for the oyster roast. You must be the young lady Cooper hired to help him with Miss Julia’s foundation. I’m Caroline Cummings.”

  “I’m Mills Taylor, and I’m pleased to meet you.”

  “Miss Taylor, I’ll make sure the invitations go out in today’s mail, and I’ll look forward to seeing you at the oyster roast.”

  While she spoke with Ms. Cummings, an elderly lady—in what looked to be a Ford Model T—pulled up in front of the post office. The vehicle was in impeccable condition and could have just come from the dealership. Mills opened the door for the woman as she came inside.

  “Thank you, dear,” the woman told her. “Caroline, I have two letters that I’d like to purchase postage for.” She smiled at Mills and asked, “Are you a visitor to our community?”

  “No, ma’am. I’ve taken a job as the director of the Heath Foundation.”

  “Julia Heath, a lovely woman. She was very active in our community and has been greatly missed. Please allow me to introduce myself; my name is Miss India Lefaye Tate.” Mills introduced herself, and then Miss Tate said, “I wish you great success in your endeavors and please give my regards to Cooper.”

  When she left the post office, Ms. Cummings told Mills, “Miss Tate’s family roots in the Charleston area go back as far as Cooper’s.”

  “How has she maintained that automobile all these years?”

  “Miss Tate’s Model T? Her father gave her that car decades ago. I know a number of collectors who would like to get their hands on her automobile, but she’ll never sell it. Back in the 1960s, she purchased a Thunderbird, but she said she didn’t like the way it handled, so she gave it to a relative.” The telephone rang in the back of the post office. “Got to go—Miss Taylor, I’ll take care of your invitations!”

  CHAPTER 4

  Guardian Angel

  The medical clinic at Alston Station was in a brick-sided building with dark-green shutters at the windows. It was situated in front of the boughs of a live oak tree that shaded the rear of the structure.

  When Cooper and Mills arrived at the clinic to donate blood, there was a Red Cross vehicle parked near the entrance. Cooper held the door for Mills, and as they entered,
a middle-aged woman with graying hair came out from an examination room.

  “Cooper, I was wondering when you’d be out. You must be Mills Taylor. Cooper has told me so much about you. I’m Williston Devereux and you can call me Dr. Will if you’d like. I think it’s easier.” Williston smiled brightly as she extended her right hand. “Cooper tells me that you’ve never given blood before. Do you know what your blood type is?”

  “No, Dr. Will, I don’t know.”

  “We’ll find out, and you’ll get a card in the mail from the Red Cross telling you your blood type.”

  Mills sat down in a chair and a Red Cross nurse asked her questions about her health. As she answered, Mills noticed a woman with three young children enter the building. Their clothes were soiled and only one of the children was wearing shoes. The woman looked pale and unhealthy and there was a bruise around her right eye. She was holding the smallest of the children on her lap, a little girl who appeared to be about two years old. Mills watched until she realized she was staring at them. Williston went over to the woman and began to talk to her before they entered an examination room. When she came out, the woman was in tears and she held the youngest child close to her.

  Cooper had finished donating blood, and Mills watched as Williston spoke to him in the front of the clinic. He then went over and began to talk to the woman. Mills could not hear what they said, but eventually, Cooper ended up on one knee while he spoke to her. Patting her on the hand, Cooper returned to Williston and engaged in a conversation for several more minutes. Eventually, the woman rose from her seat, carrying the little girl while holding the hand of the middle child. The oldest child walked in front of his mother, and they went out the clinic door.

  The Red Cross nurse thanked them for donating blood, and Williston told her how much she had enjoyed meeting her. As Cooper was driving Mills home, they passed the woman on the road—she walked with her children on the sandy shoulder.

  “Couldn’t we offer them a ride? They look so pitiful.”

  “I offered them a ride home, and she said she couldn’t accept it. That poor woman—Eula Mullinax,” he said, while shaking his head.

  “What’s wrong with her?”

  “Poverty is one of her problems, but she has others. Do you mind if we make one more stop before we go home?”

  “No, that’s okay.”

  Cooper stopped at one of the two churches located near his house. When she had attended church on her first Sunday in Alston Station, Mills passed by those two churches, feeling like she would not belong. The sign outside the church read, “Edisto All Saints A.M.E. Church.” Cooper went in the front door and was inside for more than fifteen minutes. When he came out, there was a man with him, slight in build and several inches shorter than Cooper.

  He walked to the Suburban and introduced himself. “Miss Taylor, I’m Reverend Smalls. Cooper has told me so much about you, and thank you for continuing the work of Miss Julia. I know you’ll be very successful.”

  He paused and then looked at Cooper, “I’ll see what I can do, and I’ll let Williston know as soon as I find someone to help. Good to see you, Cooper, and a pleasure to meet you, Miss Taylor. I’m sure that I’ll be seeing more of you.” He turned and walked back into the church.

  By the evening, Mills was weary from donating blood and she fell asleep in front of her fireplace. She never made it off the couch and into bed, but instead rested near the warmth of the fire.

  Morning sunlight filtered into her cottage through the French doors when Mills awakened to the sound of knocking. She made her way to the front of the cottage and standing on the front steps was a lovely, sandy-haired woman dressed in riding attire.

  “Good morning, Miss Taylor, I’m Anne Jefferson—Jeff’s sister. I wanted to see if you’d like to go horseback riding with me. Cooper has taken my boys hunting.” She extended her right hand for a handshake. “Oh, I received my invitation to the oyster roast, thank you! My husband and I will attend.”

  “Yes, thank you, Anne. I need just a few minutes to get dressed.”

  “Take your time. I’ll see you shortly.”

  When Mills arrived at the stables, Charles had saddled both horses and explained that he had come to see Anne and her children. “Enjoy your ride,” he told them as he gave Mills a foot up into the stirrup.

  When Anne mounted Mephisto, the horse reared slightly, but she patted him on the neck to calm him. “Cooper said that he showed you the ruins of the old plantation. Would you like to ride down there?”

  “That would be fine.”

  Mephisto took the lead as they neared the pasture and both horses began to canter through the field. As they got closer, they saw the ruins enshrouded in a mist that was heavier along the river. Anne held the horse’s reins tightly, bringing him to a stop, and Ginger followed suit.

  “Anne, you ride well,” Mills complimented her.

  “You should have seen Mephisto when Cooper first brought him here. He was aggressive, but Cooper worked with him, and he’s a different animal. What do you think of this place?”

  “I find the ruin amazing. Marian told me that she believes it’s haunted.”

  “There are all kinds of tales about this property. Did you know that this land was owned by some of our ancestors and was sold after the Civil War to satisfy debts? A few years ago, Cooper bought this part of the property. It was not part of the original tract that his parents purchased in the 1950s. He seems to be on a quest to regain properties that our family lost, and I tease him by calling him an empire builder. Jeff, of course, tries to talk him into developing the tracts, but Cooper will hear nothing of it. He’s going to be one of the largest landholders in the Low Country.”

  They walked around the perimeter of the old house ruins, and Mills noticed multitudes of paper whites in early bloom, along with a few daffodils.

  “Wait until you see this meadow when the daffodils are in full bloom. It’s like a sea of flowers.”

  She looked at her watch. “I expect that Cooper will be back with the boys any time now. We should probably start back to the house.”

  When they returned to the stables, Charles insisted that he would take care of the horses. “Miss Anne, you don’t get to see Cooper too often, so please let me be of help. You too, Miss Mills.”

  They both thanked Charles and walked toward Cooper’s home. As they got closer, they could hear the boys talking behind the home in the courtyard. “Mom, come and look at what we did. I shot four birds and Zack got three. You should have seen the retrieves that Sam made—he even dove under water to retrieve a bird.”

  “Blair and Zack, this is Miss Taylor, she’s helping Cooper with his educational foundation.”

  Both boys removed their hats and gloves and shook her hand. “We’re pleased to meet you, Miss Taylor.”

  Putting their hunting hats back on, they told Anne, “Cooper shot a limit. He always does.”

  “Are we going to prepare these birds for supper tonight?”

  “That would be great,” the boys responded.

  That afternoon, Mills met the group on the green. She joined Anne in a seating area under a live oak tree.

  “
How do you like it here, so far?”

  “I’m enjoying my work, and I like Charleston.”

  “Cooper is a wonderful person. He’s a hero to my boys. I think you’re going to like working for him. The past six months have been difficult for him, but he always seems able to handle adversity. The ordinary person would be crippled with the pressures he controls so well. So, you must know about Elise?”

  “Yes, I was very sorry to hear about her disappearance.”

  “I wish we knew what happened. Cooper says she left home one morning last August driving her red Mercedes convertible and didn’t come back. The car’s never been located. After her disappearance, he was put through a nightmare by some members of law enforcement. They searched his cars, his boats, his homes—multiple times. I’m not sure how many times he was taken in for questioning. I know Cooper though, and I know he would not have done anything to hurt her.”

  “What was she like?”

  “Elise was probably the prettiest woman I’ve ever known. She was in my sorority at Carolina. Every boy at the university was in love with her—she was so beautiful. One weekend, she came home with me and met Cooper. She couldn’t take her eyes off of him, and the attraction was mutual. Her senior year, she was the homecoming queen and Cooper was just starting pilot training. They stayed in touch and saw each other as much as possible. After a year, he asked her to marry him. I think they were happy for years, but I’m not sure why they didn’t have children. It’s a shame, because Cooper would have been a wonderful father. A few years ago, there seemed to be a strain on their marriage during the time that Cooper’s mother was ill, and in recent times, they didn’t seem to be as close . . . I’m talking out of turn. It’s none of my business.”

  The football landed at their feet, and Mills got up and threw the ball back to the boys.