They no longer read stories together, but each would spend time in the evenings reading. Television had its place in their lives, but she insisted the time before bed was best spent among the pages of a book.
Shrugging, Cas replied, “The trees remind me of my parents.”
Nodding, a sad smile about her lips, she said, “I thought so. I’ll bet you are so like your father. Tell me about him.”
It was not the first time she had asked for stories about his family. Eyes lifted, he hesitated, pulling his thoughts together. “Dad liked to walk in the woods. He would place his hands on the bark of a tree and said he could feel the life underneath his fingertips. Even if there was a fallen log, he would show me the creatures that would live in the rotten wood. He’d say that trees were alive even when they were lying on the ground.”
“What a fascinating man,” she replied, her voice sincere. “And he taught you so much.”
They were quiet for a moment and a small sigh slipped from his lips. Glancing to the side to assure that Zeke and Asher were still concentrating on the books they were reading, he whispered, “Sometimes, I’m afraid I’ll forget.”
“Forget what, Cas?”
He thought about his answer for a moment, memories sliding over him. “Forget my mom’s cookies. Or the way my dad’s hands were always rough from his work. Or the way the house smelled at Christmastime.”
“Oh, no, my dear. You will always remember your parents. They will always be with you.”
He looked up, doubt clouding his eyes, and she said, “To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” She smiled. “A little quote by Thomas Campbell. Just like with my George, he lives in my heart, and your parents live in yours.”
She kissed his forehead and moved off his bed, smiling as she left the room. As he closed his eyes he wondered about Bianca. Had she lost her mom? And if so, did she remember her?
2
The rain clouds that had gathered Friday night opened up and poured Saturday morning. Bianca sat at the table, her legs swinging underneath her chair, eating a bowl of cereal. Hoping to spend some time with her dad exploring their new side of the city, her eyes lit when he walked into the kitchen. Then her shoulders drooped when she took in his apparel.
“Dad! You’re going to work on a Saturday?”
He walked over and gently tousled her hair. Not an overly tall man, he was very fit, and she thought he looked quite handsome in his suit. She was only six when her mother died, but she still remembered her mom smiling at him, saying he was the most handsome man she had ever met. Her dad had always laughed, kissed her mom, and said, “You’re the most beautiful of all women.” Then they would both look over at Bianca and say together, “Except for Bianca. She’s the prettiest of all.”
She hung onto those memories, young enough for them to still make her heart ache and old enough to know that memories eventually fade.
“I’m sorry, Princess. I just need to go into work for a few hours this morning to make sure everything is straight in the office on Monday morning.”
“Ugh!” She groaned and flopped back in her seat.
He fixed his cup of coffee, put it in a travel mug, then bent to kiss her forehead. Seeing the rain outside, he moved to get his overcoat and called out, “What are you doing today?”
She thought for a moment. “I’ll go across the street and see if anyone wants to play with me.”
Nodding, her father said, “That sounds fine, Princess. Just be safe.”
Watching her father leave, she thought of Cas. She had liked discovering him as he sat under the tree, whittling. She had never met another boy that liked to carve wood and wished that they had been deep in the forest, not just under a tree in the neighborhood. Maybe he would be a woodcutter. Or perhaps he was a prince in disguise. Or maybe an evil Queen sent him into the woods to look for innocent girls. Grinning widely, she quickly rinsed her spoon and bowl and raced upstairs to get dressed. Maybe I’ll get to meet his seven little brothers today!
All of Miss Ethel’s boys sat at the breakfast table grumbling. They had games scheduled with Parks and Recreation for that morning, but with the forecast calling for rain, the games had been canceled.
“A rainy Saturday. Now what are we going to do?” Jaxon asked, slumping in his seat.
Zander sighed heavily. “I’ve got a big test coming up this week. I guess I can go ahead and study today to get a head start.”
“Well, I’ve got quite a few inside chores that will keep us busy,” Miss Ethel said, bringing another platter of eggs and bacon to the table.
Cas looked up. “Is there anything you need help with?”
Smiling, she said, “I need to go through some of your clothes to make a list of what can be handed down, what needs to be given away, and what new things need to be bought.”
“We can all help with that.” Cael grinned, adding, “If I keep growing, I’m gonna need everything new.”
The doorbell rang, and Cas glanced toward Miss Ethel, seeing surprise on her face. Since the visitor did not seem to be expected, he offered, “I’ll get it, Miss Ethel.”
She nodded her thanks and continued planning some of the chores for the day with his brothers. Scooting his chair back, he walked down the hall from the dining room, past the large, informal living room, to the front door. Throwing it open, his mouth dropped open at the sight of Bianca standing on the porch.
She was wearing blue leggings and a bright yellow raincoat. Water dripped off the raincoat, creating a puddle by her flip-flop covered feet on the front porch. Her hood was pushed back, and her damp, black hair clung to her head, more water drops sliding down her widely smiling face.
Stunned, he startled when she lifted a hand, pushed her wet hair away from her eyes, and greeted, “Cas! Do you want to come and play?”
Feeling a presence behind him, he looked over his shoulder and saw Miss Ethel approaching, her eyes wide as she saw who was standing at the door.
“My goodness, you’re soaking wet! Does your father know where you are?” Miss Ethel asked.
Shrugging, she said, “My dad’s at work today, but he said it’s okay if I play in the neighborhood.”
Moving past Cas, Miss Ethel said, “Well, come in, come in. Let’s get you dry.”
Bianca walked in, smiled up at Cas, then her gaze moved behind Miss Ethel. He turned and watched his brothers walking down the hall toward them, curiosity on their faces. He could only imagine what a sight they made for a young girl, and he whipped his head around toward her again.
Her blue eyes bugged. “Wow! Are those your brothers?”
Nodding, he said, “Yeah. Uh… not really dwarfs, are they?”
Miss Ethel laughed, placed her hand on Bianca’s shoulder, and drew her into the hall. Looking up, she said, “Zander, please get me a towel.”
Zander darted into the small powder room and came back with a thick towel. Miss Ethel took it in her hands and gently rubbed it over Bianca’s hair and face. “My dear, you have a hood on your raincoat. Why did you not have it pulled up to cover your head?”
“You can’t feel the rain on your face if your hood is blocking everything.” Bianca smiled widely as she tilted her head back and stared up at them.
“Why did you want the rain on your face?” Jayden asked, his brow lowered.
Not wanting Bianca to feel embarrassed, Cas threw a glare toward Jayden and wondered how much trouble he would be in if he told his brother to shut up.
Bianca laughed, and Cas liked the sound. It was real… bubbling up from deep inside of her, not like the silly giggles from most of the girls in his class.
“I was running through the yard, pretending to be running through a forest with an evil goblin after me,” Bianca said, still smiling. Suddenly, her brow scrunched. “I suppose that a princess running through a forest might have a cape with a hood on it, but if you have a goblin chasing you, you wouldn’t take the time to pull it up.” Seeming to have made up her mind, she smiled again and
declared, “No, definitely running through the forest with the rain on your face would be the way to go.”
Looking down at her, Cas blinked in surprise. He was also equally surprised that his brothers had nothing to say either.
“Well, that’s certainly adventurous,” Miss Ethel said, her eyes twinkling after having dried Bianca’s hair. She stood and moved to the door, staring across the street before turning back to Bianca. “Are you sure your father doesn’t mind you being over here today?”
Bianca nodded and poked her chest with her thumb. “I’m eleven. I know I’m small, but I’m not young. According to the American Red Cross Babysitting Course, I’m old enough to officially babysit someone else. Of course, they do mention how the maturity level of most eleven-year-olds can vary greatly, but I’m very mature.”
She glanced down at her wet feet, then scrunched her nose. “I don’t want to make a mess on your floor. I just wanted to know if Cas wanted to come out and play with me.”
Heat infused his face and rushed through his body as well. He could only imagine what his older brothers would say at her request. Expecting instant teasing, he tightened his jaw.
Before they had a chance to say anything, she piped up, “But I can play with all of you. I thought you might be Cas’ little brothers, like the seven dwarfs, but instead, you’re more like the seven giants.”
When no words or laughter came forth, he chanced a look over his shoulder, seeing the others staring slack-jawed and wide-eyed at their visitor.
Miss Ethel stepped forward, her hand once again on Bianca's shoulder. “Let me call your father and tell him that you’re here. We had some chores we’re going to take care of today, and you’re more than welcome to stay with us until he gets home.” Bianca quickly rattled off her father’s name and phone number, and Miss Ethel moved into the kitchen to place her call.
Cas smiled at how a slip of a girl managed to stun and silence his brothers, something heretofore he had only seen when Miss Ethel spoke or lifted her brow in a silent message.
There was no fear in Bianca’s face, but she sidled closer to him. Instead of irritation, a strange sense of protectiveness now settled over him. “These are my brothers, otherwise known as the dwarfs. Zander, Rafe, Cael, Jaxon, Jayden, Asher, and Zeke.”
She beamed as she stepped closer. “Cool names. It’s nice to meet you.”
The others grinned, murmuring their greetings in return. Miss Ethel walked back down the hall and clapped her hands. “I talked to your dad, and he said it’s fine for you to be here today.”
“Great! What are you guys going to do?” Bianca asked.
“I’ve got the boys going through their clothes today, something you can’t help with. But I’ll also be doing some housework today.”
Pulling off her rain slicker, Bianca looked around. “I’m great with housework. My dad says I’m a super organizer.”
Soon, the house was abuzz with everyone working. While the eight boys went through their closets and drawers, carefully deciding which clothes could be handed down and which items needed to go into the giveaway pile, Bianca was scooting around the first floor, dusting and sweeping.
Eventually, Cas came down the stairs and found Bianca sitting in the living room, dusting all the books in the bookcases, humming to herself. Miss Ethel came around the corner, and he caught her eye. He mumbled, “I was just checking on her.”
“Curious child,” Miss Ethel said with a smile as she looked at Bianca. “She appears to be perfectly happy to help out.” She turned her attention to him, her expression thoughtful. “You seem taken with her.”
Shrugging, he said, “Nah. I just kinda feel like I found her… or rather, she found me. Guess I feel sorta responsible.” He knew the truth was that there was something about Bianca that captivated him, but at thirteen years old, he was not about to admit to that.
“I’m going to start lunch. Why don’t you ask her if she’d like to stay?”
As Miss Ethel disappeared down the hall again, he walked into the living room. Bianca, sitting cross-legged on the floor, had a stack of books next to her, and she was wiping each one carefully with a soft cloth. She looked up and grinned.
“You all have so many books. I love to read. Dad lets me go to the library but says we don’t have enough room to keep many books. So, once I read them, I have to take them back.” She looked down at the one in her hands. “I love the cover on this one. I wonder if your mom would let me borrow it or maybe just read it here when I come to visit.”
He walked over and ran his finger along the spines of some of their favorites, looking at the book in her hands. The cover showed a watercolor painting of a quaint village. Maeve Binchy’s Echoes. He smiled as his gaze drifted over some of the other books. “I was surprised the first time I came here and saw all of these. Miss Ethel believes that everybody should read as much as they can.”
Scrunching her nose, she asked, “Why do you call her Miss Ethel? Isn’t she your mom?”
Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly, his eyes darting to the side. “No, she’s our foster mom.” Seeing the confused look on Bianca’s face, he said, “None of us have our real parents, so she takes us in and becomes our mom.”
“You don’t have a real mom either?” Her eyes were wide as she kept them pinned on him.
He was saved from answering when Miss Ethel called them to lunch. Bianca bounded to her feet, skipping down the hall as though it was an everyday occurrence for her to have lunch with them. Unable to keep the grin from his face, Cas followed.
“You can sit next to me,” he said, sliding into one of the chairs. His brothers soon followed, all expressing gratitude over the platters of sandwiches and bowls of potato salad, coleslaw, and fruit. They waited until Miss Ethel had sat, said their prayer of thanks, and nodded before they began filling their plates.
Turning to Bianca, Cas asked, “Tell me what you want and I’ll get it for you.”
“I like it all!” she said, her eyes bright.
The gathering soon settled into eating, their conversation light and jokes abounding. Bianca seemed completely at ease with the large group, chattering happily.
“I was hoping for a girl my own age to live nearby when we first moved in,” she announced. “But this is even better.”
Protectiveness once more surged within him, but he should not have been worried. His brothers appeared bemused by her, answering her many questions and listening as she talked incessantly.
“So, if you thought we were going to be the seven dwarfs, who is Cas?” Jaxon asked, his grin wide with a twinkle in his eyes. “The prince?”
Scrunching her nose, she shook her head. “No, I think the prince is kind of stupid.” Her cheeks blushed bright pink as she turned to look at Miss Ethel. “I’m sorry. I know stupid isn’t a nice word.”
Miss Ethel smiled indulgently. “While it’s true I don’t usually condone name-calling, I’m more interested in why you’re not impressed with the prince.”
“Yeah, I thought all girls like the idea of the handsome prince,” Rafe said, flexing his muscles and puffing out his chest in a mock pose.
“Have you really read the story of Snow White?” Bianca asked, looking around the table.
“Uh, yeah,” came the responses from everyone in unison.
“We always read books and discussed them when we were younger,” Zander claimed, his hard stare pinned on the younger girl.
“Actually, we still do,” Zeke said, then shook his head slightly as he amended, “Well, not really fairy tales anymore.”
Cael added, “Mr. Paulson, our sophomore English teacher, has us study a unit on fairy tales.”
She lifted her small arms, palms upward, and said, “Then you get it. The prince in Snow White doesn’t do anything special.”
Cas shifted in his seat so that he could observe her animated face better as she spoke, ducking as her arms waved about, capturing everyone’s attention.
“He doesn’t even know a
bout her,” Bianca continued. “He isn’t looking for her, searching for her, determined to find his true love. It’s the dwarfs that love her. They’re the ones that put her in the glass coffin. The prince does nothing more but wander through the woods and stumble upon her.”
“I never thought of it that way,” Asher mumbled, his soft voice sounding out as everyone sat in stunned silence.
“He just has his servants pick up the coffin that the dwarfs sweetly placed her in and carries her away. When one of his servants trips, it dislodges the piece of poisoned apple stuck in her throat. Talk about dumb luck! Then the prince kisses her. Jeez!” Flopping back in her chair, she puffed her bangs away from her forehead. “I mean, big deal! Everything he did just kinda happened.”
Almost in unison again, the boys turned and looked at Miss Ethel, who was smiling widely. “My dear, that is incredibly insightful.” Tilting her head to the side, she asked, “Where did you learn so much?”
Cas watched as a shadow passed across Bianca’s face. With less animation, she replied, “My mom used to read to me all the time. When I was four years old, I could already read simple books. When I was five, I was already reading chapter books. My dad traveled a lot, so it was often just me and Mom.”
The gathering was quiet, and Cas felt a pang in his heart as he knew what Bianca was going to say next. What they all knew she was going to say next. After all, loss instinctively understands loss.
With her thin shoulders lifting in a shrug, Bianca said, “My mom died when I was six. Dad works for my grandfather and took a new position so that he wouldn’t travel as much. We moved out of our house… he said it made him sad to think of being there without Mom. For a while, we lived in an apartment, but he finally decided that I needed a house and a real neighborhood to live in. He still works a lot, but at least he’s home at night.”
Cas: Heroes at Heart Page 2