Thurston House (1983)

by Steel, Danielle

  Jon, you're being unfair. Just drive my car, for heaven's sake. She kept it in a garage across the street now, which she rented from friends. Her own garage had been torn down along with that entire part of the property in the grips of the construction people now.

  How do you even expect us to stand it around here with all that noise? He was shouting at her over the din, and it was only when they stopped at night that she actually realized how loud they were. She had grown used to it in the last month, and would have to live with it for at least a year, from what she heard.

  I'm sorry, Jon, it won't last forever; and you'll be away part of the time. She smiled gently at him. And when you finish school next year, they'll be all through.

  He sighed audibly and looked at her. I hope so. Now, what about the car? Can I take it this afternoon?

  Yes, you may. There was a girl he wanted to take out, she was a friend of a friend, and a sophomore at Mills.

  Would you like to have dinner with us tonight? She was accustomed to dining often with both Antoine and Andr+!, and she wanted Jon to get to know them both, but he already had other plans and shook his head as he stood up.

  Sorry, I can't. And then he glanced over at his mother's friend. Andr+! was still busy on the phone, and Jon thought he couldn't hear him. Is that a new love? He looked pointedly into his mother's eyes and she blushed beet red, and he could tell by the set of her mouth that she wasn't pleased.

  Hardly, Jon. He's my business associate. But I'd like you to get to know him and his son.

  Jonathan shrugged. For all he knew, they were a couple of bumpkins from France and he wasn't interested in them. He was judging by their interest in land, the fact that they came from Bordeaux, the simple way they dressed. The fact that they were both of noble birth had gone completely over his head, and they never mentioned the chateau they had just sold. But Jon had other concerns, especially now that he had his mother's car, and half an hour later he was gone again, and didn't return until late that night. The next morning, Sabrina left the house with Antoine and Andr+! shortly after dawn, and she didn't come back again until late that night, having driven herself back from the Napa Valley again. She seemed to spend all her time in her car now, going back and forth between Thurston House and her new vineyard land, but there was a great deal to do.

  Why did you ever do a crazy thing like that? Jon asked her again when they met that night ana she saw something accusatory in his eyes, as though she had spent something she shouldn't have or she was failing him by being out so much, as she had when she ran the mines. But he was just about twenty-one years old and he was at college three thousand miles away now most of the time. And she had a right to something that excited her as this did. It was something she had wanted to do all her life, and she was only forty-seven years old. She didn't plan to just roll over and die because he'd grown up. It was the best thing that had happened to her, but it was very threatening to Jon and he was unpleasant about it each time the subject came up, as though it were taking something away from him.

  Jon, it's going to do well. I promise you. We're going to have the finest wines in the States.

  He looked at her and shrugged again. So what? I'd rather drink Scotch anyway.

  She exhaled exasperatedly. Sometimes he was impossible. Fortunately, not everyone agrees with you. And that reminded him, he turned to her with a particularly nonchalant air.

  By the way, I have some friends coming through town next week.

  Sabrina frowned as she thought and then looked at him. But you're going to Tahoe, aren't you?

  Yes. I just thought that maybe they could stop by and say hello to you. It was the first time he had ever suggested that and she suddenly wondered if it was a girl. She smiled shyly at him.

  Is this someone special to you?

  Yes. And then he realized what she thought and quickly shook his head. No, no, not like that ' it's just a friend ' never mind, you'll see. ' For an instant she thought she saw guilt in his eyes, but this time she wasn't sure.

  What's their name? He was already running off, and Sabrina called after him.

  Du Pre She didn't even know if it was a woman or a man, and she forgot to ask him before he left for Tahoe the following week.

  AFTER Jon had gone to Lake Tahoe with friends, Sabrina spent most of her time in Napa with Andr+! and Antoine and the French laborers. There was an enormous amount of work to do. There was land to be cleared, and on her old land, vines to be cut down, others to be stripped, still others Andr+! had brought from France. It would be a full year before he'd be satisfied with the condition of their land, if then, but they were all prepared for that, and their project was well under way. They had already chosen a label for the wines they would make. They would call their ordinary brand Harte-Vernay, and their finer wines Chateau de Vernay. Sabrina was delighted with all of it. She returned to San Francisco after a week in the blazing Napa sun, dark as tar, her eyes like patches of bright blue sky, her hair braided down her back. She was wearing the espadrilles Andr+! had brought her from France, and slacks, and she was just going through her mail at Thurston House, when the phone rang on her desk, and an unfamiliar female voice asked to speak to her.

  This is she She wondered who it was, but was more interested in the stack of bills in her hand. There always seemed to be more to pay, and she could see from these that Jon hadn't denied himself anything in the past few weeks ' three restaurants ' his club ' the tailor he preferred '

  I am the Comtesse Pr+!. Your son suggested that I call.

  Sabrina knit her brows, then suddenly remembered the name. Du Pr6 ' but he hadn't mentioned a countess. Perhaps she was the mother of a girl he was particularly fond of. Sabrina sighed away from the phone. She really wasn't in the mood, particularly not for a woman who announced herself in just that way. She sounded American, Southern almost, but her name was clearly French and her accent was excellent. It was too bad Andr+! and Antoine weren't in town. But they weren't, and she had promised Jon.

  Perhaps Jonathan told you that I would call.

  Indeed he did. Sabrina tried to sound welcoming on the phone while continuing to flip through the enormous stack of bills.

  He's a darling boy.

  Thank you very much. Are you visiting San Francisco, then? Sabrina really didn't know what to say to her, or why she had called.

  I am.

  It's unfortunate that Jon is out of town. He's in the mountains with some friends.

  How nice for him. Perhaps I'll see him when he comes home.

  Yes ' Sabrina steeled herself. She had to do her duty to Jon. Would you like to come to tea sometime this week? With all she had to do, it was the last thing she wanted now, but she had no choice. Jon had warned her, and the woman had called.

  I'd like that very much. I would like to meet you, Mrs. Harte. She seemed to pause strangely on Sabrina's name, and Sabrina jotted a note to herself. She might as well get it over with.

  Perhaps this afternoon?

  That would be perfect, my dear.

  I'm delighted, she lied, but with Sabrina one never knew. Our address is '

  But there was a charming peal of laughter in the phone. Oh, there's no need ' And then, Jon gave it to me a long time ago. Sabrina couldn't figure out if she was old or young, a madam or a girl friend, or simply a woman he had met. It was really the damnedest thing, and when Andr+!called later that day and asked her to run to the bank to do an errand for him, she had to tell him she couldn't go.

  Damn, Jon has stuck me with some woman of his. She's passing through town, and I've got her coming to tea. She glanced at her watch; a tea tray was all set and she was wearing a gray flannel dress with a velvet collar and a string of pearls her father had given her when she was very young. She was supposed to be here ten minutes ago, and from the sound of her, I don't think she'll leave soon enough for me to get out. I'm really sorry, Andr+!.

  It's all right. It can wait. He thought of her pushing her way through the jungles of her own land t
he day before, her hair wild, her face burned, her eyes almost a Mediterranean blue, and it amused him to think of her serving tea. He laughed and she made a face.

  I can't imagine what she wants, but Jon made a point of it, so I did the correct thing. Frankly, I'd much rather be up there with all of you. How is everything?

  Fine. But before he could say more, she heard the knocker on the front door, and then the bell rang.

  Damn. There she is. I have to go. Call me if anything special comes up.

  I will. By the way, when are you coming back?

  She wanted to go on working with them, and Jon wouldn't be home for another week. Tomorrow night, I think. Can I stay at the farmhouse with all of you? She was the only woman there, and she was the consummate good sport about sharing their discomforts and rustic life-style. And at night she helped them cook, although it wasn't her best skill. I run a mine better than I cook. She had grinned as she burned all their eggs before they went to work one day. From then on they cooked for her, and she did a man's share of work, as she always had.Andr+!admired her for that. He admired her in many ways.

  Of course you can stay here. We really have to build a decent house soon. The plan was to build a simple house for the men, and a nicer one on one of their hills, for him and Antoine, but that wouldn't come for a while. They had other priorities first, I'll see you tomorrow night, then. Drive carefully.

  Thanks. She hung up and ran down the stairs to pull open the door for a woman who stood looking at her. She wore a black wool suit, which clung to her form, and her hair was as black as coal, which Sabrina suspected was dyed, but she had a handsome face in spite of it, and eyes of brilliant blue that seemed to be examining Sabrina inch by inch, and she took one step into the house and looked up at die dome as though she had known it would be there.

  Good afternoon ' I see Jon told you about the dome.

  No. She looked at Sabrina and smiled. And Sabrina had a sudden, strange sensation as she looked at her, but she wasn't sure what it was. It was almost as though she had seen this woman before, but she didn't know where. You don't remember me, do you? Her eyes never left Sabrina's now, and slowly she shook her head. There's really no way you could. Sabrina heard the Southern accent again. I just thought that maybe you saw a photograph ' a sketch. ' A chill ran down her spine as she stood immobilized and the woman's voice was a whisper now. My name is Camille Pr+! ' Camille Beauchamp ' Sabrina felt a wave of fear sweep over her as the woman went on whispering. Camille Thurston once, but not in a very long time' . It couldn't be. Sabrina stood rooted to the spot staring at her. It was a joke. It had to be. Her mother was dead. Sabrina fell back as though she had been slapped.

  You have to leave. ' She felt ill, as though someone were choking her, and her voice was strained, but she couldn't move from where she stood and Camille stood watching her, barely able to imagine what she felt, or the enormity of the blow she had dealt. It was like seeing her back from the dead, and Sabrina had never seen any picture of her at all, thanks to her father's care, but now she saw who Jon had looked like for all these years. He was the image of his grandmother ' the hair ' the face ' the eyes ' the mouth ' the lips ' Sabrina felt an overwhelming urge to scream but instead she took another step back from her. This is a very cruel joke ' my mother is dead' . She was almost breathless now, but something kept her from throwing the woman out, some fascination with her, she had always wondered what her mother looked like, for so many years, and now ' perhaps possibly ' she had needed a mother so much back then ' but suddenly here was this woman now ' how could it be? Sabrina sat down heavily in a chair and stared at her, as Camille Beauchamp Thurston Pr+! looked calmly down at her. She was pleased at the effect she had had.

  I am not dead, Sabrina. She spoke in a firm voice and looked at her. Jon told me that was what Jeremiah had told you. That wasn't fair of him.

  What should he have said? Sabrina couldn't take her eyes off her. It was almost impossible to understand what had just happened to her. Her mother had walked out of the grave right into her life, and now stood calmly there. I don't understand.

  Camille acted as though it were something that happened to her every day. She wandered slowly beneath the dome, explaining to Sabrina what had occurred as Sabrina continued to stare at her. Your father and I disagreed a long time ago. She smiled apologetically, almost charmingly, but Sabrina was too shocked to be charmed. I was never really very happy here the memoiy of Napa returned to her and she almost winced particularly at the other house. Napa was never exactly my cup of tea it was the understatement of the last five decades and I went home to Atlanta, because my mother was ill. Sabrina stared at her, she had never heard this story before and it puzzled her. Why would her father lie to her? We had argued terribly about my going home, and he wrote to me while I was there, and told me never to come back. It was then that I discovered he had a mistress here in town. Sabrina's eyes grew even wider than they had before. Could that be true? He refused to allow me to come home, or to see you again. ' She began to cry. My only child ' I was so heartbroken I went to France. She sniffed, and turned away for an instant as Sabrina watched. If the woman was lying to her, she was good at it, she would have convinced anyone of how genuine her pain had been. It took me years to recover from the shock. My mother died ' I stayed in France for more than thirty years, and since then I have wandered aimlessly. ' Actually she had wandered into her brother Hubert's house as soon as Thibaut Pr+! had died, and she had lived there ever since, and far more handsomely than she ever had with du Pr6, but Fate had brought Jonathan into their lives.

  The name Beauchamp had meant nothing to him. He knew he had had a grandmother by that name, but she was long since dead, or so he thought. But when he went home from Harvard to Atlanta with Hubert's grandson in his freshman year, he had discovered his grandmother living there, and for two years they had discussed her coming to California with him. At first he had thought his mother would be pleased, and then, instinctively, he knew that wasn't true. But something urged him to arrange for the surprise, something he fought for a long time, and then finally he had given in. And he was angry at her now. She was being difficult and demanding with him, he thought, she hadn't given him the car he'd wanted for so long. He didn't owe anything to her, or so he told himself, and Anally he told Camille the time was right. Sabrina deserved it for all the times she had left him alone to work at the damn mines. He knew what Camille had in mind, and she had promised him that he could live on in the house for as long as he wanted, once she moved back in. It was her house after all, not Sabrina Harte's, but she didn't point that out to her now. She was going to wait a few days for that. And Camille had also promised Jon a car. But she had other things to think about just then. Sabrina was looking at her suspiciously.

  Why would my father lie to me?

  Would you have loved him if you knew the truth, that he had chased your mother away? He wanted you to himself, Sabrina, you and that old witch who brought you up. Jon had filled her in on that, the hated Hannah had stayed on but was now dead. And he didn't want me interfering with his affairs. He had a mistress in Calistoga, you know. And suddenly Sabrina wondered about that again. She had heard tales about him and Mary Ellen Browne a long time ago, but supposedly that was before he married Camille, even though someone said they had a child, but Sabrina had never put much stock in it. And he had another woman in New York. A faint chord of what she said rang true, as Amelia swiftly came to mind, but somehow she had never really thought that her father had had an affair with her ' perhaps at the very end of his life, but not before. Their relationship had seemed so chaste ' but warm ' Sabrina looked into the woman's eyes with total confusion now.

  I really don't know what to think. Why did you come here now? Why now?

  It's taken me all this time to find you again.

  I haven't gone anywhere. I'm still living in the house he built for you. There was an accusation there, but Camille seemed not to notice it. She was very smooth. You could have foun
d me long ago.

  I didn't even know if you were alive. And for all I knew, Jeremiah still was and would keep me from you.

  Sabrina smiled at her cynically. I am forty-seven years old. You could have gotten to me, if you chose, whether my father was alive or not. He would have been ninety-two years old that year and hardly a threat to anyone, surely not to this brazen woman standing there. And Sabrina couldn't bring herself to feel anything for her, except suspicion of all she said. And why had Jon led Camille to her without warning? That puzzled her. Why hadn't he warned her of this? Did he hate her that much? Or was this his idea of a joke? Why did you come here now? She wanted to get to the crux of this, and get it over with.

  Sabrina, you're my only child, my dear. She looked near tears.

  We've been through that. And I'm not a child anymore.

  Camille draped herself across a chair, like an ingenue, and smiled at her. I had nowhere else to go.

  Where have you been living till now?

  With my brother, and he just died, so I've moved in with his son, the father of our Jonathan's friend. Sabrina cringed at her possessiveness of her son. But things are a little awkward there. I've had no home since my husband died ' er ' my friend ' that is ' She blushed, but covered the faux pas as quickly as she could, but Sabrina had instantly picked it up.

  You married again, Madame Pr+!? She stressed the name, and raised an eyebrow as she waited for Camille to speak. And something told her that she wasn't going to like what she was going to say from now on.

  But this time Camille managed to stun her again. Don't you realize, my dear ' your father and I never divorced. I'm still his wife, and I was when he died. Jonathan had assured her that Jeremiah had never married again, not that he knew of anyway, although he had never known the man. His grandfather had died eight years before his birth. Technically Camille was smiling evilly at Sabrina now I own this house.