Uncle Colt looked up in wonderment. “Does this mean what I think it means?”
“Yep. Sylvia is terminating her parental rights. William has full custody, and you two are the proxy parents.” Aaron grinned again. “Well, that is if you agree.”
Tears ran down Aunt Jenny’s cheeks. “Of course we agree! But what of Sylvia?”
Aaron waved a hand. “It’s in the paperwork... the divorce is final. William has full custody. If you agree, you and Colt will be transferred custody until William returns from the war.” He grinned.
Aunt Jenny jumped from her chair, clutching Joe Joe to her chest, and came around to give Aaron a hug. Uncle Colt was up, shaking Mr. Paul’s hand and then Mr. Aaron’s.
I had to brush the tears from my own cheeks. “How did this happen?” I asked.
Aaron gave me an appraising look. “It’s a long story... You said you had to get back to work.”
“I’m not leaving until I know where Sylvia is at.” I stuck out my chin aggressively.
Aaron threw back his head and laughed. “Curiosity killed the cat.”
“Not if the canary got to it first,” I countered.
“What does that mean?”
I shrugged. “Are you going to tell us or not?”
“I’m not rightly sure where she’s at, right at this very moment. I left her out in California.”
“California?” Aunt Jenny’s eyes widened. “What on earth is she doing in California?”
“Well, it seems she wants to be an actress.”
“I’m still confused,” I said.
Aaron sighed, a smile still playing on his lips. “Let me tell you a story. There once was a monstrous creature, a snake with horns...”
I held up a hand. “Wait, wait... you don’t mean the Uktena?”
“I see you’re familiar with the story.”
J.C. had closed his eyes and slept in my lap. I smoothed his hair, so much like Michael’s, and so much like his great Uncle Aaron’s. “Yes, I’ve heard the story.”
Both Aunt Jenny and Uncle Colt nodded their heads.
“Well, I was the one who defeated it.” He ducked his head and glanced at us through his thick lashes. “And saved the Red Man.”
We stared at him as if he had gone crazy.
“Aaron...” I shook my head at him. “You’re still not making sense.”
“Let me explain. You see, the Uktena have scales so dazzling that men are drawn to them instead of being repelled by the danger. As soon as I met Sylvia, I knew she was one, and that she carried destruction in her beauty.” A hint of red touched his cheeks. “I’ve been a bachelor so long, and I’ve had my share and my brother’s share of girlfriends.” He aimed an elbow in the direction of his brother’s ribs which Mr. Paul deflected.
“Watch yourself. You were off gallivanting around while I did all the work.” Despite his words, Mr. Paul laughed good naturedly. “Go ahead with your story.”
“Anyway, I knew Sylvia was nothing but trouble. She flirted with me that first day, the day our Red Man fainted.”
“Me? I’m the Red Man?” I frowned at him.
“The Red Man controls the lightning. That’s you.”
I shook my head at him. “You’re still not making sense.”
“Lightning was harnessed to make electricity, and that’s you. Oh, by the way... guess what I heard? We should have electricity out this way by the middle of next year.”
“That soon?” Uncle Colt asked.
“That’ll be wonderful. Just a click and you have light,” Aunt Jenny said.
Mr. Aaron nodded at me. “Just like you, Jay. You’re the lightning manager, the bringer of light.”
“Me?” I looked around the table, incredulous.
Aunt Jenny nodded. “You brought light to me. What would I have done if you hadn’t been here when Laurie ran off with Walter Calhoun?”
“I didn’t do anything...”
“And if you hadn’t been sitting here in the kitchen when they returned, I would’ve killed Calhoun,” Uncle Colt said.
I blushed. “Uncle Colt, you know better. You wouldn’t have killed him... you may have maimed him, but you wouldn’t have killed him.”
Everyone laughed.
“I haven’t heard about that,” Aaron said. “You mean little Laurie married that big lug?”
Mr. Paul shushed him. “I’ll tell you later.”
“Please go on. You haven’t finished the story.” I waved my hand at Aaron to continue.
He gave me a wink and a nod. “Well, I just got my bow and arrow...” He pretended to notch an arrow and pull the string of the bow. “And my aim was true and straight...”
“...to the heart at the seventh spot from the head,” Aunt Jenny finished for him, laughing.
I laughed, too, but was growing more frustrated. “What did you really do?”
“I found where her heart lay... if you can call what she has a heart. She confided in me she always wanted to be an actress. It was easy to persuade her to go to Hollywood.” He tilted his head at me. “It was easy to persuade her to go with me since I look like Mike. Course, I’m better looking.”
“But Michael told me she never really liked him... she preferred Dan,” I said.
Aaron sat back with a smug smile on his face. “She might have preferred Dan’s money, but she’s always been after Mike.”
I cast a sideways glance at Aunt Jenny and Uncle Colt. They didn’t need to know all the details. I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter.”
Aaron shook his head. “Nope. She’s out of your life now.”
“So, you took her to California...” I prompted.
“I got her a place, took her around to auditions... she’s a great little actress.”
Aunt Jenny snorted. “Don’t we know it.”
“And she agreed to leave Joe Joe?” I asked.
“I convinced her he’d be a detriment to her career.” His face became grim. “It didn’t take much convincing.”
“So, it’s all a done deal?” Uncle Colt said, as if he still couldn’t believe it.
“Yes. William was sent the papers, and he signed and returned them.” He nodded at Aunt Jenny and Uncle Colt. “Y’all need to sign one final paper, agreeing to act as William’s proxy.”
I worried my bottom lip. “I hope this didn’t upset William.”
“A little pain now is better than a lot of pain later,” Uncle Colt said.
I shook my head. “Still it’s sad. Off at war... to get a Dear John letter...”
“I really don’t think William is so heartbroken. If anything, he probably feels relief. I could tell, when he was here on leave, that he realized he had made a mistake,” Aunt Jenny said.
I nodded at her. “Probably true.”
Uncle Colt eyed Aaron thoughtfully. “Sylvia didn’t mind you leaving her there?”
“Don’t know if she minded or not... I never had intentions of staying, so I didn’t ask her permission to leave.”
“You left her alone?” I shook my head again. “That’s not right.”
Mr. Paul patted my shoulder. “Sweetie, women like Sylvia are never alone for long.”
“You got that right,” Uncle Colt said. “She even flirted with me.”
Aunt Jenny’s mouth gaped open. “With you? And you didn’t tell me?”
Red crept up the back of Uncle Colt’s neck, and he held up a hand to silence his wife. From the look in her eyes, I was sure the conversation would continue later.
Aaron, his warm brown eyes so much like Michael’s, leaned across the table to me. “Jay, she wanted to be there, practically begged me to take her there. And I got her a place to live, and she has her first acting job. She also gets money from her parents, and from someone else... she never told me who was sending it.” He bowed his head all the way to the table. “Oh, Red Man, whom I rescued from the Uktena’s clutches, did I not do right by her?”
“You did good.” I smiled and got up to go to him. “May I call you Un
cle Aaron?”
“Sure, shug.” With a crooked smile on his face, he rose to wrap me and J.C. in his arms. “I’d be honored.”
Epilogue
We spread out a blanket by Cedar Creek and plopped the babies on it. The warm September day still felt like summer. Almost everyone was there, Zeke, Marla, Grace, Laurie, Walter, Aunt Jenny, Uncle Colt, even Mr. Paul and Uncle Aaron.
Most of them were fishing, scattered up and down the bank, except for Laurie and Walter, who had wandered off on one of the trails. Marla and I were on the blanket, watching the babies.
Mr. Paul sat down beside me and put his hands out for J.C. who crawled to him. My son’s grandfather gathered his grandson in his lap and fed him some of the banana I peeled.
“He is so much like Mike...” His voice was full of pride.
Uncle Aaron dropped down beside his brother, pretending to take a bite of the banana, making J.C. laugh.
“Have you heard from Mike lately?” Uncle Aaron asked.
I put my hand in my pocket. “I got a letter from him yesterday.” Aunt Jenny and Uncle Colt, fishing close by, heard and lay their poles down. Zeke and Grace were farther away and had not seemed to notice. I was glad. I didn’t want them to hear Michael’s words.
I unfolded the letter, smoothing it out, taking my time. I had already read the letter a dozen times, and a lump still came to my throat with every reading.
“What did he say?” Uncle Colt asked, impatiently.
I swallowed hard and smiled at the faces around me. “I’ll read you some of it...” I shuffled the first page, filled with personal messages, to the back and cleared my throat. “I want to tell you... I need to tell someone of what happened two days ago, when we cleared this island. Sam, a handler, and Argos, his dog, moved ahead of us. Argos suddenly signaled the enemy lay ahead. Our inexperienced lieutenant had sent another scout ahead who reported all clear. He believed the scout instead of Sam and his dog.” Here I had to pause and bite my bottom lip and take a deep breath, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, before I could continue. “We were led into an ambush. The dog behaved heroically, attacking the enemy while under fire and did all he could do to protect his handler. But Argos was seriously wounded, and Sam was killed, along with three more in our squad. Jay, these men are like brothers to me. Sam and I were good friends. I want you to know I’m fighting for these men, and if it comes down to it, I will forfeit my life for them. If I die here, I die here. Or, if I’m brought before a court martial, I’m brought before a court martial. But I refuse to allow another officer to disregard the superior sense of smell and hearing these dogs possess. I’ve come to peace about it...” I fingered the locket around my neck, tears stinging. I blinked them away and continued reading. “I am doing all in my power to keep both my brothers and these dogs safe. Argos, by the way, survived but is badly wounded. I’m trying to nurse him back to health in these hellish conditions. He’s as much a warrior as any of us, and I refuse to leave him behind. My conscience would never allow me to abandon such a brave soul.” A tear rolled down my cheek, and I swiped it away and swallowed the lump in my throat. I couldn’t read more. I folded the letter and put it back in my pocket.
Marla rubbed my arm and shoulder, and no one spoke. I heard sniffing and knew it wasn’t only from the women.
Aunt Jenny was smiling through her tears and was the first to speak. “Jay, you’re lucky to have such a good man. Paul and Aaron, I know y’all are proud.”
Neither man spoke; both had eyes focused on the quilt.
Uncle Colt cleared his throat. “The day can’t come too soon to see William and Michael walking down that old red clay road.”
Mr. Paul spoke, his voice hoarse. “I hope we never have a war like this again. The last war was supposed to be the war to end all wars.”
Uncle Aaron looked up and around at our faces. “Evil will always exist in this old world. Good thing we have family to see us through.”
“And friends,” I added.
“People who believe in us... people we can depend on to always love us, no matter what,” Marla added. Her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.
I reached out to squeeze her hand. “Y’all know when J.C. was born, I was all alone, except for the doctors and nurses...”
Aunt Jenny interrupted me, tears shining in her eyes. “We’re so sorry you had to go through that by yourself.”
I shook my head. “But I wasn’t alone! That’s what I was going to say... even when we think we are abandoned, far from those who care, we still have God. People will disappoint us — sometimes due to circumstances beyond their... our... control. But God never disappoints.”
Marla’s eyes became thoughtful as she traced a pattern on the quilt. “Yes, people often disappoint us.”
Uncle Aaron eyed her, with a look of concern on his face, before he straightened. “We’re all human, and we make mistakes. We need to commit to one another, commit to forgive, commit to help each other through the bad times.”
I nodded my head and several others voiced their agreement.
Marla raised her gaze, and the smile finally reached her eyes, as she nodded. “If we commit to God, to do his will, all the other will fall into place.”
Joe Joe grabbed her fingers, and she pulled him to his feet. “We should enjoy each moment we can, but life is hard. We’ll always face new challenges and struggles.”
The future had surprises in store, I was sure. Hadn’t the old woman said Michael would return broken? And I had no idea what that might entail. I shook the thought away and looked into the baby’s smiling face.
Joe Joe released Marla’s fingers, and I held out my hands, encouraging him to step toward me. He took two steps before falling into my outstretched arms. Marla and I laughed and clapped.
Uncle Aaron smiled at Marla and then at me. “Did he just take his first steps?
“He did,” I said proudly.
“Let’s try J.C.” And he lifted James Colton and set him on his feet.
I handed Joe Joe to Marla and smiled at J.C. He laughed as I held out my hands to him, and he strained against Uncle Aaron’s hands to get to me. Laughing, Uncle Aaron released him, and the baby tottered toward me, taking three full steps, before landing on his behind. And then it was Joe Joe’s turn again to take a few more steps before tumbling over.
Uncle Colt swept Joe Joe into his arms and tickled him, sending the baby into peals of laughter before he had a chance to cry.
Aunt Jenny’s eyes traveled to the path Walter and Laurie had taken. “When do you think we’ll have another grandchild?” she whispered loudly to Uncle Colt.
“Maybe soon,” he whispered back, smiling at his wife. “I’m so glad she got herself a good husband.”
I raised an eyebrow at them. “What? I thought ya’ll didn’t like Walter...”
“We love Walter,” Aunt Jenny whispered, still loudly enough for those of us around the blanket to hear, but not loud enough to carry to Laurie and Walter, wherever they were.
“Yeah, just don’t let him know that,” Uncle Colt whispered back. “He’s been working so hard, trying to get back in our good graces. I wanna keep him working hard for as long as possible.”
Marla, Mr. Paul, and Uncle Aaron laughed, and my eyes traveled around our small group, stopping at Uncle Colt.
“So, you’re not upset she married Walter?”
Uncle Colt shook his head. “Nah. It’s not that she married him; it’s the way she did it.”
Aunt Jenny smiled up at her husband. “And Laurie wouldn’t even have married Walter if it hadn’t been for Jay.”
“But I didn’t have anything to do with that,” I protested.
Aunt Jenny nodded her head vigorously, so much so that Joe Joe, still in Uncle Colt’s arms, laughed. “Oh, yes you did. Laurie saw how happy you were with Michael. I think when she saw you at your wedding, it made her long to be a bride... you were so beautiful.” She wiped away a tear. “And Walter has brought Laurie so much happiness.�
��
“I was afraid Laurie would never marry or leave home. You’ve been a good influence on her.” Uncle Colt set Joe Joe on his feet to take another tottering step. “For now, Walter can be like Jacob and work seven years for the privilege of my daughter’s hand. And that’ll make me a rich man in the process.”
All the men laughed, but Aunt Jenny, Marla, and I exchanged a glance.
Aunt Jenny gave Uncle Colt a stern look. “You’d better treat him right, Colt. Jacob left with Laban’s daughters and took much of his wealth.”
Uncle Colt grimaced. “Well, in that case, instead of seven, it’ll only be a couple of years of hard labor...”
Everyone laughed, including the babies. It signaled the time of departure. We gathered our things, in preparation to go home.
As I left the clearing, with J.C. on my hip, I looked back to the towering cedar tree, standing tall at the spring, and, thanked God I had family and friends who loved me. I only needed enough faith and trust to believe in them and to know I could always find God’s presence shining through them, if only I would seek the light...even when hidden...
in the shadow of the cedar.
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A Note from the Author
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This is the second of In the Shadow of the Cedar trilogy. The other three are published on Amazon, Thunder Snow, Prequel, Clothed in Thunder, Book 1and Fading Thunder, Book 3.
Biography
Sheila has lived many places, none home until she returned to south Alabama. She lives with her husband, three dogs, and two cats near the farms where her ancestors struggled to scratch a living from the ground.
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