“What frightened the horses?”
“No one really knew. The weapon wasn’t to be found because I picked it up and hurled it far away behind some rocks. Where Tom searched, because I sent him there the next day.”
Even now, when she’d come so close to revelation, I knew she didn’t mean to tell me who had wielded that murderous weapon.
“Why have you told me this?” I asked.
She flung out her hands. “Because you’ll be with Noelle all day tomorrow, and if you understand you will leave her alone.”
“Who struck him?” I had to be relentless.
“Caro, please don’t go on with this.”
“Do you know who killed him?” I demanded.
She seemed to crumple into herself. “Even though I was there, I don’t really know. No one knows. Just go home and forget about all of us at Manaolana, Caro. Our guilt and unhappiness isn’t yours.”
“I don’t know how to do that,” I said miserably. “Anyway, it’s my unhappiness too. I’m involved through all of you—because my father died, and because Noelle is the way she is.”
Joanna recovered herself and stood up. “All I ask is that you do Noelle no harm on this trip to Hana. Whatever it is, let her keep what she knows.”
Harm wasn’t what I wanted for Noelle. But it seemed that the most terrible harm had already been done. I stood up beside Joanna and asked one more direct question.
“Why did Marla lie to me about Noelle putting the tapa beater in her bag?”
“To protect me, of course. She knew I put it there. Poor Marla. She’s always wanted to please me, and she used to be so jealous and envious of Noelle.”
“Because of my father? But she managed to have an affair with him, didn’t she?”
“It wasn’t much of an affair. And none of that matters now. When it comes to the tapa beater, I suppose she thought that blaming her sister wouldn’t make any difference. But that’s enough—let’s stop this and go inside.”
I didn’t move. “Marla spends so much time with her sister. She seems to be kind and considerate toward her.”
“Why not? Noelle is like a child, and there’s none of the old rivalry left. Perhaps Marla even feels some guilt herself—that she has something to make up to her sister.”
I doubted that, trusting Marla’s “consideration” less than ever. I looked around uneasily, wondering where she was, and if she could be hovering somewhere within earshot.
Joanna caught my look. “Don’t worry. Marla’s taken Noelle to the library in Makawao in the jeep.”
I was silent. If it had been Marla at the wheel, rather than Tom, then everything fell into a pattern.
My grandmother saw my troubled look. “I’m glad, for your sake, Caro, that you’re going to Hana tomorrow. It’s better to get away from here. Though it may be difficult to keep Marla from going with you, since you’re taking Noelle.”
“She mustn’t come,” I said quickly.
“I know she shouldn’t, but I’m not sure we can stop her.”
In the living room, Joanna bent to make certain the bandage on my knee was in place.
“How did this really happen, Caroline? What made you fall into that ditch?”
I couldn’t tell her. There was enough for her to worry about. On impulse I put my arms around her, and suddenly we were holding each other and crying a little when Marla walked in, followed by Noelle, whose arms were full of books. Her eyes looked bright and watchful.
“A touching scene!” she said.
My mother carried her books—picture books!—to a chair and dropped into it, quickly absorbed.
Joanna said brusquely, “I’ve some work to do with Tom,” and strode out of the house. When Marla went upstairs I followed her, limping a bit. She seemed not to notice, and I stood in the doorway to her room when she went inside.
“Well, come on in,” she said reluctantly.
I’d never been in her room before, and I looked around with interest. This long corner room was larger than mine. A big window opened toward the mountain, and side windows overlooked the row of eucalyptus trees that hid the stables. A desk stood at an angle to one window, with an empty sheet of yellow paper rolled into the typewriter, and a tape recorder near at hand.
The room seemed to swallow me into riotous color. Blue-greens and copper tones, mixed with busy flower designs, were everywhere, from bed to sofa. The white walls were covered with Maui scenes, framed and unframed. Marla too apparently collected artifacts from the islands—clay and wood figures, pottery, tools and weapons—a muddled array. I wondered how anyone could live with such a stir of objects and colors.
Marla sat down at her desk, and waved me toward the sofa. “You haven’t told me about your time with Ailina or your trip to Honolulu, Caroline. How did it go?”
“I enjoyed all of it. David’s mother came to meet us at Iolani Palace, and I liked her very much.” I was talking to mark time, waiting for an opening when I could take her by surprise.
She watched me with bright interest, and I suspected that she was playing some new secret game. “It’s strange to think that a long time ago Ailina and I were rivals for your father’s rather easy affections. Of course we were both pretty stupid to fall for a man like Keith. Can you imagine, Caroline, that there was a time when I thought Keith would divorce Noelle and marry me! Idiotic, of course.”
I didn’t believe that she regarded any of her own actions as idiotic, or that she ever forgot or forgave.
“Didn’t it trouble you that my father was married to your sister?” I asked.
“Noelle? how could she ever hold a man like Keith? He needed someone alive and exciting—someone he could match wits with!”
“Like Ailina?” I said.
She began to fiddle with her typewriter, rolling the paper back and forth. It wasn’t in her to receive a thrust without making a return lunge.
“Of course, I’ve always wondered about Koma,” she mused. “I’ve always suspected that he wasn’t Carlos Olivero’s son. Isn’t that an interesting thought, Caroline? How would you feel about having Koma for a half brother?”
Since I knew that she had been the one to tell Koma the truth, there was no point in continuing any of this. I no longer wanted to surprise her.
“I don’t suppose Koma or I would care, one way or another,” I said. “We don’t much like each other.”
I started toward the door, and she spoke again, lightly. “Have you had a fall, Caroline?”
That brought me around to stare at her.
“The grass stain on your skirt,” she pointed out. “And those red streaks that look like Maui earth.”
How did she dare to do this? I was the one to be taken by surprise, but at least she’d given me an opening.
“Yes,” I said, “I had a fall.” I pulled up my skirt to show the bandage. “A jeep came very close to me on the road this morning. So close that I had to jump into a ditch to save myself.”
Her bright, intense look grew even sharper. “You’d better take care, Caroline. Don’t become accident prone.”
“Joanna said you were out in the Manaolana jeep, driving to Makawao.”
“That’s right—I was.”
I decided on a direct attack. “It was you, wasn’t it? You tried to run me down.”
“If I’d tried, I’d have succeeded. I missed you, didn’t I?”
“And the silversword poster? That was your doing too. You cut that up and then blamed Noelle!”
My accusation didn’t upset her in the least. “Why not? You’ve spelled trouble for all of us ever since you came. I’m just sorry that nothing I’ve tried so far has worked to drive you away. But don’t worry—I’ll think of something better.”
Chilled by her tone, as well as her words, I wondered if Marla was not far more unbalanced than Noelle.
When I didn’t answer, she went on.
“Oh, I meant to tell you—when I returned the jeep to Tom just now, he said Noelle was going with you to Ha
na tomorrow. Of course I will come too. She mustn’t go without me. I can sit with her in the back seat and keep her happy on the long drive.”
“That’s not a good idea,” I told her quickly. “I don’t think you and her to be happy. What do you want, Marla?”
Her look darkened. “Would you really like to know?”
“I think I do know. You want to keep my mother exactly as she is. But why?”
This time I’d gone too far, and now her antagonism was free of restraint and in the open. There was even a sort of madness stirring in this room with its clashing colors and quarreling designs. Marla took a step toward me and I fled back across the hall to my room.
There I dropped into a chair, upset, and not a little frightened. The glimpse I’d had of Marla’s consuming jealousy of her sister was devastatingly clear. No matter what Joanna thought, it still existed. Marla’s own clever brain and real talent had never balanced the scale against all she coveted in Noelle. I had the depressing feeling that if I tried to talk to Joanna about any of this, she would laugh at me. Over the years Marla had convinced her mother of something that wasn’t true.
Nevertheless, Marla must not come with us tomorrow. If she were there, everything I hoped for with Noelle would be defeated. But how she was to be stopped I didn’t know.
14
We were all waiting on the lanai for David early the next morning. Noelle and I wore jeans and shirts, and had put on low-heeled shoes, since there might be a lot of walking on this trip. I had seen to it that we brought sweaters as well. The added touch of the kukui lei was for luck. We might need a lot of it today. My knee felt a little sore but I could ignore it.
Marla had announced several times that she was coming with us. At breakfast Joanna told her bluntly that she didn’t want her to go, and that I should have this last opportunity to be alone with Noelle. Marla said nothing in answer, and I knew she’d do as she pleased.
When David’s car drove in and I saw him walking toward us across the grass, I knew how much I’d been looking forward to this day. It might be the last time I’d have with him, so sadness was mixed with pleasure. Since I couldn’t stop my growing feeling for David, I would give in to it for today, and just enjoy being with him.
When he reached the lanai, Marla spoke quickly, announcing her plans. “I’m coming too, David. Noelle needs me.”
“That’s not a good idea, Marla,” he told her quietly.
Her smile was sly. “If I’m there to watch out for her, you can spend more time with Caroline.”
He ignored that. “It’s still not a good idea. By Monday you’ll have your sister to yourself. So don’t begrudge this one day she can spend with her daughter—and Caroline with her mother.”
Joanna glanced uneasily at Noelle, who sat a little way off on the lanai, rummaging through her big shoulder bag. The words “daughter” and “mother” slipped past her as they always seemed to when used in connection with me. Her mind simply discarded what she was afraid to hear.
“Let’s get started, Caroline,” David said. “I don’t know when we’ll get back, Joanna.”
“Make it a good trip,” Joanna told us, sounding uneasy.
When we started toward the car, Marla came after us. I wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d simply climbed into the back seat and defied anyone to put her out. David looked grim by this time, and she might be tangling with more than she’d bargained for.
Unexpectedly, it was Tom O’Neill who stopped her. I hadn’t noticed him near the far corner of the house, but apparently he’d recognized what was happening.
“Marla!” His sharp tone allowed for no argument. “You’re going to help me with the horses today. My stable boy’s off. Remember?”
“I changed my mind,” she told him. “Not today, Tom.”
“Today,” he said. Just that one word, but this time she heard the command in his voice, and crumpled surprisingly. Her expression of amused malice vanished and instead she looked wary. Of Tom? What was going on here?
As we started off, I turned to wave to Joanna, and saw that Marla was walking toward Tom, her usual cocky assurance gone. She had given in completely, and this was something I wanted to know more about.
“What happened?” I asked David. “How did Tom manage to get Marla to do what he wants?”
“I don’t know. Sometimes I’ve wondered about that on other occasions.”
Noelle, sitting between us, the oversized bag on her knees, unexpectedly answered my question. “Marla’s afraid of him. She doesn’t want him to get mad at her.”
“Why is that?” I asked carefully.
But she only went off at a tangent. “I’m glad she didn’t come with us. Sometimes you’d think Marla was older than I am—she gets so bossy. Now we’ll have a lovely time. I haven’t seen your parents for months, David.”
She sounded perfectly lucid, so perhaps this would be a good trip for her. David glanced across at me and nodded. “I thought you and Caroline would enjoy this, Noelle.”
“Oh, we will!” she cried, and I sensed a new excitement in her. Because she was escaping from her keepers at Manaolana? “This is like old times, David. Do you remember when we drove to Wailuku and you left me at the library and took Linny up to see the Needle? Afterwards I joined you for a picnic at the Japanese Gardens. Linny talked about that trip for days.”
I put my arm around her. “Do you realize how long ago that was—how many years?”
She laughed. “Not years. Just a few months, I’m sure.”
“But you said ‘old times’ just now—remember?” I had to push this whenever I could and try to break through.
“Now you’re mixing me up, Caroline.” She pushed away from me petulantly.
Too much of the time she behaved and sounded like a child herself. Yet somehow during the coming hours I must try to help her to grow up to the present. No matter what the risk, this was a chance I had to take and I couldn’t turn away now. The thought of the crater was always there in my mind. The moment when we really took her back to the past would be the moment that might help her to remember—or else break her completely. In the meantime, all I could do was to pick up every opportunity to push a few small realities.
For a time we stayed away from troublesome topics. I found myself looking at David often as he drove, liking so many small things about him. The way his hair dipped over his forehead, the set of his jaw when he firmed it. He wasn’t a man to antagonize, I thought—but he was a man for a woman to feel safe with. That was a very dated notion, except that one couldn’t be quickly rid of something in a woman that still wanted to lean on the protector of old, while nevertheless being independent. A nice trick, if it could be managed.
Once, when he felt me watching him, he sent me a quick warm look that made me feel suddenly like a young girl on her first date. Young enough to wonder about all the mysteries that still lay ahead; young enough to plan and hope—and fall in love.
Go away, Scott, I thought—and strangely enough, the memory of him seemed to be fading, so that only anger remained. Before I could be free, I had to rid myself of that too. I remembered what Ailina had said: Anger is the thing that gives no life.
We drove down the mountain and through Paia, a little town beloved these days by artists. There were small shops along the way, and houses set back from the road amid flower gardens. The coast road to Hana led east from Paia.
I knew the distance wasn’t great in miles, but only maniacs traveled the Hana road in a hurry. The climbing snake turns to the crater were simple compared with this road which snapped in and out at such sharp angles that we often traveled in opposite directions within the same few minutes. We could see where we were going ahead, and look back to where we had been—always across indentations of water. The scene changed so constantly that I hardly dared to blink lest I miss some of the enchantment.
Jungle descended these eastern slopes of Haleakala, since the mountain was central to all of East Maui, its wild state practical
ly impenetrable in some places. Often we looked out upon vast spreads of green that were the massed tops of trees, rippling gently in the wind. Hues and textures changed constantly. Sometimes a hill ahead looked like brocaded green satin, and one hardly saw the ruffling that changed the pattern until the car drew close. Darker greens were splashed at times with scarlet flowers that startled with their intense contrast. I knew there were orchids out there, perhaps the lovely bird-of-paradise and the ubiquitous wild ginger. Of course there were all shades of hibiscus, the state flower of Hawaii. However, the red flashes came too swiftly and were too distant to identify.
Always the sea curled in far below the road, and glimpses of rocky cliffs were frequent. Sometimes jungle-clad precipices dropped away to an ocean that cut mercilessly into these shores. With the sun not yet overhead, shadows helped to sculpt the rain forests and the great banks of ferns that overhung the road. This was the more tropical part of Maui, where rain fell most often. Occasionally the jungled slopes moved back and we passed banana groves, bamboo forests, and always a variety of palm trees. Sometimes taro patches appeared—tiny farms cut out of the jungle.
Now and then a road sign in the shape of a taro leaf pointed us on our way. We saw only a few clusters of houses near the road, and other humans appeared only when they passed us in a car. David drove at a steady, comfortable pace.
Black lava rocks broke the surf as it hurled itself upon the land, sending spray high in white showers that fell back into the water. Sometimes we caught the dazzle of a mountain stream hurling itself down a cliff to join the fierce seas below, leaving only a thread of silver to interrupt the green.
After a time, however, beauty itself could become a surfeit. The whipping road, the smothering avalanche of greens, the endless sea breaking over rock and beach—all became a monotony I could no longer absorb and give my full attention to.
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