"Because everything has been out of control lately," Lydia said as she turned the vehicle onto Lincoln Way. "There's no way they don't know that something is wrong with Aaron. He can't hide it."
"Stu told me that the DCI is involved and found nothing. It just doesn't make sense to me."
"Digger has been here as long as Aaron. They go way back."
"You don't think he'd cover things up."
"Oh, dear, I don't know what to think any longer."
Polly sat in silence until Lydia parked behind the restaurant. "Lydia?" she asked once the Jeep was turned off.
"Yes dear?"
"How long are you going to allow this to go on?"
"I don't know what you mean. I'm not allowing anything."
"Yes you are," Polly said, turning in her seat to face Lydia. "You are the strongest woman I know. You deal with things right up front. You face everything with courage. But not this. You're lying down and playing dead."
"What should I do? This is Aaron. I either trust him or I don't. And when I stop trusting him, we're done."
"Maybe he needs you to do something other than blindly follow along. That doesn't eliminate trust, does it?"
"Okay. What would you have me do?"
"I'm not sure. I believe that Stu and everybody else is hiding something. Maybe it's for our own good, but you and I both know that secrets never work out well for anyone. I think this has something to do with Atlanta."
Lydia pulled her phone out and fiddled with it, passing it back and forth between her hands. "How hungry are you?"
"I'm fine."
She backed out of the parking space and drove back out onto Lincoln Way, headed to Duff and turned north.
"Where are we going?"
"I need someplace quiet. There's a park on the north side of town. It's time to get some answers. If we have to drive through McDonalds because we're in a hurry, we'll eat hamburgers."
"Okay. How are you getting answers?"
"I'm going to make a phone call. If she doesn't answer, I'll call her brother. And if he doesn't answer, I will call the other brother."
"Aaron's siblings?"
"Yes. I'm absolutely certain that his sister knows what's going on. She's older than him and there was always something between the two of them. Something I couldn't know. But it all happened long before I was part of the family and as long as it didn't crawl out and bite me, I didn't figure that I needed to worry about it."
Lydia pulled into the park and drove until she found a place to park facing the South Skunk River. The river was frozen, but still beautiful.
"Sit still," she said. "We'll see how this goes."
She scrolled through her contacts and finally pressed a few buttons and then put the phone to her ear and waited.
"Helen?" she finally said. "Yes. It's me. Lydia."
She listened. "Oh, the kids are all good and the grandkids are adorable. Things are fine. But Helen, I have a different problem. It's Aaron."
A pause. "No, no, no, he's healthy. Nothing like that. But I need to ask a huge favor of you."
Polly could hear the voice speaking in the background, but it was too muffled to distinguish words.
"Aaron has been distant for the last month or so," Lydia said. "I've never known him to be like this in all the years we've been married. And Helen, last week a man named Albert Cook was killed here in Bellingwood. They don't know who did it, but rumor has it that it was a professional... a sniper."
Lydia glanced at Polly, then said, "Helen? Are you there?"
More muffled speaking and Lydia replied. "I just need information. You don't need to come to Iowa."
Her eyes grew wide and her mouth dropped open, then she said. "I understand. I will meet you in Des Moines tomorrow. No. I won't say anything to him. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."
Another moment of listening. "That sounds fine. I'll be ready for you. It will be good to see you again, too. Goodbye."
Lydia swiped to end the call and put the phone in her lap.
"What?" Polly asked.
"She's coming to Bellingwood. Tomorrow. Now I really don't know what to think about this. I assumed she would give me advice on how to talk to Aaron."
"What else did she say?"
"That I'm not supposed to tell Aaron she's coming because he'll try to talk her out of it and be very angry with me."
"We don't have any more information than we did before."
"She knows something, but didn't want to talk about it on the phone. She said we all needed to be face to face. And she said that Aaron has done nothing wrong, but he needs to tell me everything now. It's over... whatever that means."
"I guess we wait until she gets into town."
Lydia put her hand on Polly's leg. "Can she stay at Sycamore House?"
"I'm sure Aaron would love that," Polly said sarcastically. "But yes, I know there's a room available in the addition. Are you sure?"
"Aaron and Helen have a... let's call it a volatile relationship. They love each other dearly, but can set a room on fire with their sparks. If she says something is black, he explains in no uncertain terms that it's gray and she doesn't understand how color works. There's no one else on the planet who sets him off like she does."
"I'm surprised you called her."
"There is also no one else on this entire planet who understands him like Helen does and she is the only person I would trust to have his back no matter what. They may drive each other out of their minds, but she loves him more than I do."
Polly sent a text to Jeff, telling him that she had a guest who needed one of the rooms in the addition. Sycamore Inn had changed how they did things. There were still a few long term guests that requested a room at Sycamore House, but after the experience with the punks in the band last summer, he'd gotten choosier about who stayed on-site.
He responded in the affirmative.
Polly sat back and said, "We've got a room. Just bring her over when you get into town."
"Thanks. I think she'll love the place. She's into old buildings and antiques and all that."
"What does she do?"
"Helen's independently wealthy. Her husband made money before he died. They invested it and now she lives well. She travels and is involved with one of the big children's shelters in Atlanta. I think that's where she spends most of her time and energy."
"No kids of her own?"
"They never got around to that."
"Does she come to Bellingwood very often?"
Lydia shook her head. "No. Like I said, she and Aaron are oil and water. It just got to be too difficult. I think all of our kids have trekked down to Atlanta to see her over the years. They love Aunt Helen and she spoiled them rotten. She's quite a character. I think you'll love her."
"A character like Beryl?"
Lydia backed up and turned to head out of the park. "That's interesting. Yes. She's like Beryl. She's outspoken and doesn't care if people are annoyed with her for saying what's on her mind. She's not nearly as creative, but she's as passionate about what she loves. Helen isn't a small woman. She looks like a military matron. Her hair is always pulled tightly into a severe bun, she has a blocky face and wears wire rim glasses that do nothing to make her beautiful. Imagine Aaron's eyebrows on a woman." She chuckled. "But when she sees a child, everything about her becomes soft and warm. I always thought my children would be afraid of her because she seems so formidable. The first time they saw her, Marilyn was only four. She ran up to Helen, took her hand and waited to be lifted into Helen's arms. I was shocked, but every single one of the children loved her immediately."
"She sounds pretty amazing," Polly said.
"She's always just been Helen. The woman is definitely a force to be reckoned with. If we're going to confront Aaron, I'm glad she'll be here and on our side."
"Me too. Even when Aaron is all droopy and out of sorts, he still scares me."
Lydia laughed. "He's not all that scary. What he's doing now is weird and
has me pretty well freaked out, but he isn't scary. Now what do you want to do about lunch?"
Polly looked at the time. She really needed to get back and take care of her dogs. "What if we got takeout? I have a couple of dogs who are going to be desperate to see me."
"I forgot about them!" Lydia exclaimed. "I'm sorry."
"No," Polly said. "Don't. I usually make sure there's someone around to take care of them, but Henry is on a job site out of town and I didn't think to ask anyone else."
"What if we run in and get sandwiches to go. It will only take a few minutes."
"That's perfect." Polly reached out and took Lydia's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Now that you've talked to Helen and have started to be proactive, you sound better."
Lydia pulled back into a parking spot at the bagel shop. She turned off the Jeep and reached over to draw Polly into a hug. "I feel better. Thank you for pushing me to do something rather than let it continue to fester. There has to be an end to Aaron's craziness and it's time for me to put the finish line out there in front of him. No more wandering aimlessly. Come on, I'm buying lunch."
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
"Over achieving again, I see." Henry walked into Polly's office.
She looked up, startled to see him. "What are you doing here?" she asked.
"Better question. What are you doing here?"
That didn't make sense, so she subtly turned to look at the time on her computer. "How did it get to be five thirty?"
"Tick, tick, tick," he said, tapping at the invisible watch on his wrist. "What are you working on?"
Papers were scattered across her desk, covering everything. Polly made a half-hearted attempt to straighten them up and then pushed them away.
"I'm frustrated with the coffee shop and bakery. I don't know what I want yet. So, it's a mess."
He pulled a chair around to sit beside her and picked up several sheets. He put them down and picked up a few more. "You really are all over the place with this, aren't you?"
"If someone just gave me a hint - a name or a style, anything - I could focus. Right now all I'm doing is being frustrated."
"Maybe you should stop for the day. Rebecca and Evelyn are taking Sarah out for dinner, the office is dark, and Sylvie and Andrew are gone. Jessie is out with some friends. It's just us."
"Just us? Really? What should we do?"
"You know what I think we should do." He brushed his hand across her shoulder, and caressed her neck.
Polly's body reacted with a shiver. "You always think we should do that."
"Are you complaining?"
"Nope, not at all."
"That wasn't what I was thinking, though. Let's get the dogs and go for a drive."
Henry never wanted to just go for a drive. He had something in mind.
"Where are you taking me? Do I need to get dressed up?"
"No. Just wear warm clothes and we'll want to take the leashes."
Polly gathered up the paper that had been spread out and piled it into a relatively neat stack. She turned her monitor off and grabbed her phone. "I don't need anything else?"
"Nope. I'll feed you."
"This sounds like fun." She took his hand as they left the office and walked up the stairs to their home. Sometimes she still called it her apartment, but more often than not, she thought of it in terms of their home. Henry was part of every single inch of it. Even when it had just been her apartment, it was filled with him. He'd built everything.
She opened the front door and stopped. "We aren't going out, are we?" she asked.
"I lied."
"I'd have gone anywhere with you, but this is perfect."
Henry had found many candles and candlelight filled the living room. She could see it flickering around the corner of the doorway into the media room and dining room as well. "Where are the animals?" she asked. "Candles seem dangerous."
A small bark answered her question. They were locked in her bedroom.
"Can we let them out?"
He chuckled. "Sure. I just knew that they weren't safe with unattended fire." He drew her close and kissed her lips, then trailed kisses down her neck.
"Ohhh, you were thinking about that."
"Are you?"
Polly put her hands on his upper arms and pushed him back so she could look into his eyes. "Henry, I love you. There is never a time that I don't want to be thinking about that."
"That's a strange response, but I'll take it."
"What made you do this?"
He took her hand and led her to the sofa. "I started thinking about you today and how much you do for everyone. We stopped in Ogden for lunch. A woman from Fraser heard us talking about Sycamore House and stopped me. She said you saved her life."
Polly dropped her head. No one was to know about that except Aaron.
"Do you do that type of thing very often?"
It hadn't been a big deal. The woman had three children and last fall she was in danger of losing her house. Polly and Lydia had been talking about something else when Aaron came in, upset at having to deliver a foreclosure notice. It still startled Polly at how small the amounts really were in the middle of Iowa, but it was enough to put a young, single mom over the edge. She'd been out of work for a few months, gotten behind, and had never been able to catch up.
"It just happened," Polly said. "It's no big deal."
He leaned forward and kissed her. "It's a big deal to her. She gave me this." Henry reached over and turned a piece of paper right side up. "She's had it in her car for months, hoping to get down here to meet you, but at the same time she was embarrassed to face you."
Polly picked up the hand drawn picture of three kids and their mother in front of a trailer. The sun was in the sky, grass was on the ground and smiles were on each face. "That's sweet," she said, her eyes filling with tears. "Aaron wasn't supposed to tell her who did it. She needed help and I could do it."
"Is this the first time?" Henry asked quietly.
She shook her head. "No. It's not. Does that upset you?"
He gestured around the room at the lit candles. "Not at all. I'm proud of you and it's this type of thing that makes me fall in love with you more and more. I thought about it all afternoon and I just wanted to spend some time with you this evening telling you how wonderful I think you are."
Another yip and scratching at their bedroom door startled both of them out of the moment. "We'd better deal with that before your dog damages the door," Polly said.
"My dog?"
"Yes. Your dog. Obiwan would never do anything so heinous." She stood up and crossed the room to open the bedroom door. Two dogs came barreling out at her and right behind them were two cats that were incredibly miffed at having been confined to a single space.
Henry had gotten up and was standing in the doorway to the dining room. "I picked up dinner, too."
~~~
They were snuggled on the sofa in front of the television when the front door opened.
Rebecca called out softly, "Polly? Henry?"
"We're in here, honey." Polly said, pausing the movie.
She came bouncing in and sat down on the chair next to Henry. "We took Mom out for pizza. That was fun. Mrs. Morrow said that we should go out more often so Mom can get some fresh air. Isn't that great? She's better!"
Polly forced a smile. Rebecca wanted nothing more than for her mother to be healthy. She wasn't. It was one thing for the girl to manage her grief while her mother showed signs of deterioration, but renewed strength and vigor would only give Rebecca hope and that hope was going to be crushed. Polly knew this because she'd been through it as a child with her own mother.
"I'm glad you are having fun with her. Mrs. Morrow is pretty terrific."
"She said that after school tomorrow we should go downtown to find a dress for Mom for the Valentine's Day party. We're going to look at the antique store. Won't that be cool? There are some great old dresses there and Mrs. Morrow said she saw something that would be perfect and it
won't cost very much either."
Polly drew a sigh of relief. She no longer needed to worry about the yellow dress.
Henry put his hand out much like he did with Polly, waiting for Rebecca to take it. "Did you take pictures tonight at dinner?"
"Mrs. Morrow took some of the two of us. It was great. She said she would print them out and I should draw some frames." Rebecca looked at his hand and finally put hers into it. He squeezed and she smiled.
"That's great." He turned to Polly. "I never thought about having Rebecca draw frames for pictures. Maybe we should do that with a picture of Han."
"What about Obiwan?"
He brushed her away. "Oh, that old dog? He's just common place. Han is the hot new thing around here." He winked at Rebecca. "Don't you think?"
She took her hand back. "You're weird and you're trying to get me in trouble with Polly. It won't work."
"Why don't you get ready for bed," Polly said. "I'm glad you had a great evening and it sounds like Mrs. Morrow has a busy week ahead for you."
"It's gonna be great!" Rebecca jumped up and ran out of the room. They heard her open and shut her door and then open it again and run across the floor to the bathroom.
Henry took Polly's hand. "Stop it."
"What?" she asked, surprised.
"Stop worrying about what's coming. Let her have what's happening now. These are the memories she needs to keep."
Polly swatted his belly with the back of her hand. "You shouldn't read me so well."
"I watched that look go across your face. Evelyn Morrow has been through this a number of times with patients and their families. You let her take care of this. Your job will come when Sarah is gone and Rebecca needs to be comforted."
"That's going to be horrible."
"And you will make it easier for her. Then as time passes, she will find it easier and easier to deal with her memories and grief. But let her have this right now."
"I know," Polly said. "I kept my mouth shut, but it's going to break my heart."
He pulled her close and she snuggled in against his chest. "I love you with all of my heart, Polly Giller."
The front door opened and closed again and Polly sat back up. "We're in here," she called out.
Pages of the Past (Bellingwood Book 9) Page 16