by Diane Noble
A balmy late-spring breeze rustled the leaves overhead, and a couple of sparrows hopped along the grass in the corner of the yard. A moment later, a mockingbird sang from a nearby tree, then fluttered over to land in the maple tree above them, its tail bobbing jauntily.
“This morning, one little portion of a verse stood out above all the others your dad quoted.”
Melissa absently stroked Mia’s forehead as the child rested in Kate’s lap. She gave Kate a questioning look.
“‘Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart.’” She smiled at Melissa. “When I heard the words, I substituted Mia’s name: ‘Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen Mia’s heart.’”
Melissa’s eyes grew wide in wonder. “Yes,” she said quietly, her eyes filling. “My prayer will be that he will strengthen my baby’s heart. Just whispering those words gives me courage.”
Just then, the telephone rang, and Paul reached for it. Again, it seemed that Paul was doing more listening than talking.
Kate gave Melissa a quizzical look. “I wonder who that could be?”
Her daughter shrugged and let her gaze drift away from Kate’s. Melissa obviously knew more than she was willing to let on.
Paul hung up the phone then got up and came over by the sliding screen door. “I need to run an errand,” he said.
Kate couldn’t imagine what could be so important that it couldn’t wait until Monday. She sometimes even resented such intrusions into their Sunday afternoons. After all the energy Paul put out on Sunday mornings, he needed to rest in the afternoon.
Noting Kate’s frustration, Paul said, “I’m sorry. It’s just something I need to do.”
“I was about to suggest that we babysit and let the kids have some time to themselves.”
“Actually, I don’t think it will take both of you to watch Mia,” Melissa said. “She’s worn out from her busy Sunday morning.” She lifted the sleeping toddler into her arms, stood, and reached for Kate’s hand to help her up. “But I think we’ll take you up on your offer. A banana split from Emma’s Ice Cream Shop has been calling my name since we got here.”
Kate shook out the quilt as Melissa stepped into the house, Mia curled on her shoulder. John went with her to settle Mia in the port-a-crib, which they’d moved into the living room, saying something about walking instead of driving to the ice cream shop.
Paul stepped outside to help Kate fold the quilt. They worked as a team, folding the quilt in neat squares until they stood a foot apart.
His eyes met hers, and he gave her a sheepish grin.
She shook her head slowly, sighed, and smiled back. She couldn’t help it.
KATE STIRRED UP a batch of her oatmeal orange-cranberry cookies, her thoughts returning to the urn and how it came to be in Renee’s hands. Something had been niggling at the back of her brain about how Renee and Collin met—and how fast the romance was moving. It hadn’t even been three weeks since they met.
She slipped the first cookie sheet into the oven, set the timer, and turned on the burner under the teakettle. Then she took a few minutes to check on Mia, who was still sleeping soundly, and headed back to the kitchen.
As she pulled a teacup and saucer out of the cupboard, her thoughts again went back to Renee. She had heard bits and pieces of Renee’s history, but she realized she didn’t know many of the details about her background, her marriage, or the untimely death of her husband. Though more times than not, Renee rubbed her the wrong way, Kate’s heart went out to her. Collin must have been even more charming than Kate could imagine for Renee to have fallen so suddenly for him.
The teakettle whistled, and she stood to pour the boiling water over the Earl Grey loose-leaf tea that Renee had given her. She had only poured in a drizzle when she stopped, another thought flying into her brain. Could Renee have met Collin before?
Was their meeting truly serendipitous? Or had “bumping into her” been planned?
Something clicked, and she stopped dead still. She was missing something, but what was it? One thing she needed to consider: Renee, unwittingly, likely held some clues.
She put the teakettle back on the stove, glanced in at Mia, then she headed to the phone.
She would invite Renee over for tea and a chat. It was time to delve a little deeper into Renee’s early life.
Chapter Thirteen
Renee wasted no time driving over to Kate’s. Kate led her into the kitchen, and they sat down at the table, where Kate had already set out her best teapot and teacups with some pretty floral napkins she’d bought at the Mercantile. A plate of fresh-baked cookies was in the center of the table, the scent of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger still filling the kitchen.
“My, my,” Renee said. “What is the occasion?” Kisses jumped into her lap, circled a couple of times, then settled down.
“I’m babysitting Mia. My family’s off running hither and yon, and I decided I was in the mood for cookies and tea and someone to share them with.”
Without commenting, Renee lifted the lid and peered into the contents of the teapot. Kate grinned and passed the plate of cookies.
Renee took a cookie and munched thoughtfully.
“Did I tell you that my Collin can fix the perfect cup of tea? Even while we were in Italy, he found loose-leaf Earl Grey and Devonshire cream, if you can imagine.”
Kate sipped her tea, then reached for a cookie. “Maybe he can give us all some instructions on how to make the perfect cup of English tea. Has he said when he’s coming?”
“He hasn’t booked his flight, but he’s hoping to get away before the end of the month.”
“I ran into your mother again the other day. Seems she’s still having a hard time with all this.”
Renee put down her teacup. “She’s afraid of losing me.” She shrugged and looked away from Kate toward the maple tree in the backyard. “And she knows how hard it was when I lost Ellis, even though it was years ago.”
“Ellis was your husband?”
“Yes. We went to college together. He had a dream to become a doctor, which suited me just fine. I knew I’d make the perfect doctor’s wife.”
She picked up her teacup, pinkie finger extended, and raised an eyebrow. “I anticipated the social events I would be expected to attend and host. I knew without a doubt I would be a hit, which would have benefited us both.”
Kate poured more tea, but Renee seemed lost in thought and didn’t notice. “It’s been a long time since I’ve thought about all this, but every time I do, I realize that Ellis has never left my heart.
“Anyway, I dropped out of college and went to work to bring in a paycheck while Ellis continued in medical school. The same year he got his MD, I got pregnant. We had a beautiful little girl we named Caroline—for obvious reasons—though we called her Carrie.”
She stopped speaking for a moment, patting Kisses, who was snoring lightly in her lap. “There was this accident...a freak thing, really. Our little girl ran into the street...a car was coming...”
Renee’s eyes filled, and again she looked away from Kate.
Kate reached for her hand. “If this is too painful, please don’t feel you need to—”
Renee blew her nose and turned back to Kate. “My mother’s concern for me, I think, is based on the fear that I might lose someone I love again.” She shrugged and dabbed at her eyes. “And maybe fear that she’ll lose someone she loves too.” She gave Kate a watery smile.
“To make a long story short, to try to fill the void, I returned to school to get my degree. Ellis, now a surgeon, lost himself in his work and also, to ease some of his own pain, began going with a group of doctors to donate his services as a surgeon to the poor in other countries. Then one day on a trip to some remote village in Guatemala, his plane went down. It was monsoon season, and the pilot didn’t use good judgment. The wreckage was never found.
“He’d wanted me to go with him on the trip, but I needed to study for a final.”
She shifted her gaze to t
he little Chihuahua in her lap for a moment before looking up again. She nibbled her cookie and took a sip of tea. “It took me years to forgive Ellis for going on that trip—and to forgive God for all I’d lost. First Carrie, who’d been the light of both of our lives, then Ellis, who was my soul mate.”
“I’m so sorry,” Kate said.
Renee sniffed, and the haughty expression she so often wore returned in a heartbeat. “Well, there was a silver lining in all this. Ellis had taken out a large life insurance policy that left me quite nicely fixed for the rest of my life. And without going into detail, I must say I’ve made some wise investments over the years...not to mention my philanthropic work with various charities. Though I try to keep that particular candle under a bushel here in Copper Mill.”
“I understand why it would be so hard to give your heart to another man,” Kate said. “Collin must be very special.”
She nodded. “He is. Though, as with all men, he’ll need a little training,” she added.
“What’s surprising is that it all happened so fast. I mean, you knew Ellis for years before you married...”
“Well, you see, even Collin has said it’s as if we’d known each other forever. And that urn. When he chose it, it was exactly as if he knew my likes and dislikes. As if we’d known each other before.”
“Could it be possible that you had met bef—”
A cry from the port-a-crib interrupted her. Kate stood up like a shot and went over to the crib.
Mia lay still, looking up at Kate with feverish eyes. Her cheeks were flushed, and her breathing seemed too rapid.
“Oh, dear Lord,” Kate whispered and reached for the toddler.
In a split second, Renee was at her side. She retrieved the blankie from the port-a-crib and tucked it around Mia while Kate shifted the toddler to her opposite shoulder.
“Does Paul have his cell phone on him?” Renee asked, her face white.
Kate nodded.
Without hesitation, Renee ran to the kitchen and dialed the number as Kate called it out to her. “Come quickly,” Renee said, her tone clipped. “It’s Mia!”
As Renee rounded the corner, Kate sat down and settled Mia’s head against the crook of her arm. Renee knelt beside her. As the older woman gazed down at the toddler’s face, she reached out and brushed a blonde lock of hair from her forehead with her fingertips. Then her eyes met Kate’s, and in that instant, Kate knew she was thinking of Carrie, the precious child she had lost.
Just then, Paul, John, and Melissa came in the front door.
Melissa ran over and knelt on the other side of the rocker. John was a half step behind her. “Call Dr. Lucas’ emergency number,” she said as she reached for Mia. “Hurry.”
But John had punched in the numbers before the words were spoken.
Chapter Fourteen
How long has it been?”
Paul looked up from the Newsweek he was flipping through, then checked his watch. “About forty-five minutes.”
“It seems like hours.” Kate sighed. “Waiting is always so difficult.”
Just then, Melissa came into the waiting room and headed toward them. She sat down next to Paul. “Thank you both for coming. It meant a lot to us to know you were right there behind us on our way.”
She took a deep breath. “Mia is stable, actually sitting up and smiling. Dr. Lucas fitted her with an oxygen mask to ease her breathing and make her more comfortable. He wants to keep her here for observation.”
“I agree that it’s the best thing,” Kate said. “Is he calling in some other specialists?”
Melissa smiled. “How did you know that before we did?”
“Simple deduction. If the tests he’s run are inconclusive, it makes sense he would call in someone else.”
“Dr. Lucas wants to avoid surgery if at all possible, and rather than putting Mia through the trauma of moving to another hospital or clinic for more tests, he’s called another pediatric cardiologist who will be here tomorrow. He’s part of the team we mentioned earlier.”
Paul sat forward. “It’s the waiting, the not knowing what’s ahead, that’s the hardest.” He gave his daughter a gentle smile. “It’s difficult for your mother and me, but I can only imagine what it’s like for you and John.”
Melissa tucked an errant strand of hair behind one ear. Her eyes looked heavy with concern. “We’re going to stay with her, of course,” she said. “They’ve got recliners in the pediatric room for parents.”
“Can we see her before we leave?” Paul asked.
Melissa stood. “She’s wide awake and will love seeing you.”
A few minutes later, they peered through the doorway of the brightly colored room. Mia was sitting in a crib jabbering to the stuffed rabbit that Paul had picked out for her.
She looked up and giggled as Kate and Paul walked toward her, then she held up her arms to be picked up. Being careful with the oxygen-mask tubes and connections, Paul lifted her from the crib, held her close, then as the rest of the family circled around him, he prayed for the child in his arms.
IT WAS NEARLY MIDNIGHT when Paul and Kate headed home.
Paul reached across the space between them to take Kate’s hand. “You okay?”
“I’m just thinking about the kids and all they’re going through, and of course, mostly about our little Mia.”
“Being a parent is hard, but being a grandparent is in some ways harder.”
They rode along in silence for a few minutes. Then Paul said, “Tell me the latest about the urn. We’ve been so concerned about Mia, I haven’t had a chance to ask.”
Kate pulled her knees up onto the seat and turned toward him. “I’m still waiting to hear from Dr. Hosea. Meanwhile, my curiosity about the piece is growing stronger by the day. I invited Renee over this afternoon, thinking I might find out more about the urn and the man who talked her into buying it. But we ended up talking more about her life story than anything else.” Kate paused in thought. “Still, something about the way she met Collin Wellington bothers me, but I can’t explain what.”
“Did she tell you anything new?”
“Only that they both agreed it felt as if they’d known each other for years. Renee said she was amazed at how well he seemed to know her likes and dislikes, and how similar to his they were.”
She narrowed her eyes in thought as Paul slowed the car and turned onto the highway leading to Copper Mill. “It seems almost too perfect.”
Paul’s eyebrow shot up. “What do you mean?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. There’s just something about this whirlwind romance that makes me curious. And after hearing about Renee’s background, my heart goes out to her. No wonder her mother is so concerned. I don’t want to see her get hurt.”
Paul gave her a quizzical look, and she told him what Renee had divulged that afternoon. She could see by his expression that he had a new appreciation for her.
She leaned forward. “But something else came up in my latest sleuthing on the Net. When I did a search for museum thefts, one came up in Oxford.”
Paul glanced at her, his eyebrow raised. “Oxford?”
“Exactly. The description of the urn was identical to Renee’s. And then there’s my uneasiness about Collin.”
“You’re not thinking he stole the urn, are you?”
Kate sighed. “I can’t imagine that he did. But just as the old saying goes, ‘All roads lead to Rome,’ it seems all my curious musings lead to Collin.”
“And now you’re worried that he might be preying on Renee’s affections, that he’s using her.”
“I don’t want to believe that, but I am worried.”
Paul turned onto Smoky Mountain Road, and as the Honda rounded the curve and the parsonage came into sight, Kate leaned her head back wearily.
They got out of the car, and as they were walking into the house, Paul reached out for Kate’s hand and stopped her. “I’ve been wanting to tell you something for a while now,” he said.
&nb
sp; She tilted her head.
“You’ve shown so much grace with how you handled things after I insisted we back out of the trip to Italy. I know how much you wanted to go. I just want you to know how much I appreciated it. It’s made some other...issues...easier to deal with.”
“I’d rather be with you here, Paul Hanlon, than anywhere else on earth,” she said softly. “Other women might need to be walking through a field of sunflowers under a Tuscan sky, or splashing barefoot in Trevi Fountain, or following the footsteps of Saint Francis in Assisi.” She looked up at him and touched his cheek. “But just hug me tight, my dearest, and I’m in heaven.”
And Paul did just that.
AS KATE STEPPED through the door into the kitchen, she noticed that there was a message on their answering machine. She went over to it and scowled as she listened to a barely discernable whispered message.
“I need to see you, and I’ll not take no for an answer...”
“Who is it?” Paul was already in his pajamas standing in the doorway.
“I have no idea,” Kate said. “I’ll listen again.”
Paul came over to stand beside her as she replayed the message.
“It’s of vital importance,” the gravelly whisper went on. “You might say it’s a life-and-death issue.”
Chapter Fifteen
By morning, Kate had realized that the mysterious voice on their answering machine belonged to Caroline Beauregard Johnston.
She waited until ten o’clock to call.
Renee answered and seemed surprised when Kate asked to speak to her mother.
“Who is this?” Caroline demanded a moment later.
“Kate Hanlon.”
“I’ve been waiting for your call,” Caroline wheezed.
Kate strained to hear the older woman’s voice. “Do you have a cold?”
“Goodness, no. I just don’t want to be overheard, if you know what I mean. I need to talk with you—away from the house—for obvious reasons.”
What obvious reasons? Then it dawned on her. Caroline didn’t want Renee to overhear the conversation. That meant it probably had to do with Collin Wellington.