Simple Choices

by Nancy Mehl

  “I know, Papa. I know.”

  I got up and fetched the quilt from the kitchen. Then I pulled my rocking chair near the couch and watched Papa as he fell asleep, Mama Essie’s beautiful quilt on my lap. I woke up a couple of hours later when someone kissed me on the head. Startled, I turned around to see if Mom had come downstairs, but no one was there. I was alone.

  I sat there for a while, running my hands over the beautiful quilt, remembering how Mama Essie used to wake me when I’d fallen asleep as a child—with a kiss on the head. I thought about the times we’d spent as a family—Papa telling his silly jokes and singing “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad” while he swung me around with his strong arms. The way he used to tease Mama, and the funny way she wrinkled up her nose when she laughed, making her look like a little girl even when her hair was gray and the spring had left her step. Mama and Papa had built a strong family through faith in God, the love they had for each other, and the determination to always believe that with God, anything was possible. Like Papa fighting against the shadows that tried to overtake him because he’d made a promise to the woman he loved.

  And like Mama Essie kissing me on the head to let me know everything was all right.

  After a few more minutes, I gathered my courage and got up to check on Papa Joe, confirming what I already knew in my heart.

  Papa and Mama were finally together again, and the darkness that had tried to defeat my grandfather had been conquered once and for all.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  I think we should postpone the wedding.” Dad shook his head. “Papa would be horrified by that idea, and you know it. He wouldn’t want to be the cause of disrupting your special day.”

  “But it feels too soon. How can we celebrate my wedding so quickly after Papa’s funeral?”

  My mother was making sandwiches while Dad and I sat at the table in my kitchen. We’d arranged for a funeral home in Sunrise to make the arrangements for Papa’s service. Papa had always made it clear that he only wanted a graveside service. “I don’t want people sitting around telling long-winded stories about me,” he’d say. “Just plant my body in the ground. As long as the good Lord knows where it is, that’s all I care about.”

  “You’re sure about burying Papa here?” I asked. “I thought he’d want to be next to Mama.”

  My father cleared his throat and stared at the tabletop for a moment before answering. “Actually, we’re probably going to have Mama moved here, too.”

  His statement took me by surprise. “Wow. I—I don’t understand. Didn’t Papa and Mama buy a double plot in Nebraska? Isn’t that where they wanted to be buried?”

  Mom stopped her lunch preparations and gazed at my father, a strange expression on her face. “I think you need to tell her, Daniel.”

  I looked back and forth between them. “Tell me? Tell me what?”

  “Your mother and I had a long talk on the way up and back from the funeral home,” Dad said. “It was clear we needed to face some feelings we’ve both been having. Papa’s death brought everything out into the open.”

  I was tired and although the sadness I felt over losing Papa was overshadowed with the knowledge that he and Mama were finally together, I wasn’t in the mood for riddles. “I guess you need to explain what you mean. I’m not getting it.”

  My father cleared his voice again. “Haven’t you noticed that your mother and I have been behaving a little … oddly since we’ve been in Harmony?”

  I smiled for the first time since Papa died. “As opposed to?”

  My father’s eyes narrowed. “Okay. Let’s say our behavior is a little stranger than normal, will that do?”

  I nodded. “I can accept that.”

  “Gee, thanks.” He shook his head, but I saw the corners of his mouth turn up.

  Mom came up behind me, carrying our plates. She’d made us sandwiches with potato salad. “Your father has been concerned about my impromptu buying spree. Of course there’s nothing wrong with buying whatever I want, but you know me, Gracie. I’m usually …”

  “Cheap?” my father interjected.

  She frowned at him. “I was going to say thrifty, thank you.”

  “I have to admit I was curious about all the purchases you made in town,” I said. “You could almost open your own store. So what was that all about?”

  She got three glasses down from the cabinet. “Well, the explanation happens to be the same reason your father took a dislike to Sam.”

  “Okay, now I’m confused. What do those two things have to do with each other?”

  My father sighed. “Well your mother was trying her best to buy Harmony, and I’ve been jealous of Sam even before I met him. And it’s because …”

  “You miss Harmony.” The light had finally come on, and I was surprised by the revelation. “I thought you two were thrilled to get away from here. What gives?”

  My mother got a pitcher of tea out of the refrigerator. “We weren’t thrilled to go, Gracie. We hated leaving. We loved Harmony. But Bishop Angstadt’s hold over our church stood in the way of God’s will in our lives. In the end, we had no choice.”

  As she filled our glasses, Dad picked up where she left off. “When we moved away, I think we tried to put Harmony out of our minds. It got easier when Papa and Mama followed us to Nebraska. And when Benjamin cut himself off from the rest of the family, the only thing that made sense was to turn our back on Harmony for good.” He shook his head. “But the truth is, we never really forgot this place. It’s always been home.” He reached over and took my hand. “When I met Sam, I disliked him because he had what I’d lost—a home in Harmony. It sounds so selfish, but in my defense, I didn’t realize why I reacted so strongly to him … until Papa died.”

  “But what does Papa’s death have to do with anything?”

  Mom brought us our drinks and sat down beside me. “Because when we thought about sending Papa’s body back to Nebraska, we both felt the same way. That we didn’t want his grave that far away from us.”

  I frowned at her. “But he wouldn’t be far away from you. He’d be …” I stopped and stared at them, my mouth hanging open. “You’re moving back to Harmony, aren’t you?”

  My mother leaned over and put her arm around me. “Only if it’s okay with you, Gracie. We realize you’ve made a life here, and we don’t want to butt in—”

  “Are you serious?” I exclaimed, cutting off the rest of her sentence. “I would love to have you here!”

  Dad grinned. “Then it’s settled. We’ll start looking for a house right away.”

  “You don’t need to do that. You can live here.”

  Mom squeezed my shoulder. “But this is your house, Gracie. We don’t want to …”

  “Now how many houses do you think I can live in at one time, Mother? It’s perfect. After the wedding, I’ll move into Sam’s, and this house will be yours.”

  “We’ll buy it from you, Gracie,” Dad said.

  “Don’t be ridiculous. I don’t want to sell it to you. This house should have been yours in the first place. If Uncle Benjamin hadn’t been so confused about things, it would have gone to you anyway. I know he’d want you to have it, Dad. And you know it, too.”

  My parents stared at each other for a moment. Then my mother broke out in a smile. “Okay Gracie, if you’re sure. After the wedding, we’ll go home and put the house in Nebraska up for sale. Then we’ll come back here for good.”

  “And we’ll bring Mama back, too,” Dad said. “Our family still owns several plots in the Harmony cemetery. Mama and Papa will be right next to each other. The way they should be.”

  I picked up my glass of iced tea and took a big gulp. Then I put it down and smiled at my parents. “Papa’s last gift wasn’t the quilt from Mama. It was bringing his family back together.”

  My father grabbed my mother’s hand. His voice broke as he said, “I believe that’s exactly right, Gracie. He brought us all home. And with the quilt, even Mama is here with us.”r />
  For some reason, I didn’t tell him about Mama’s kiss. My pragmatic father might not believe me, and for now, it was between Mama, Papa, and me. And I wanted to keep it that way.

  We spent the rest of the day together. It felt right, sharing memories of Papa while planning his funeral. Sweetie brought over enough food to feed us for a week; Ida hitched up Zeb and drove over to comfort us. She added her own tales of Papa and Mama, and it helped all of us to be reminded of how many lives they’d touched. Abel came by to see if he could help us. He looked tired, and when he offered to do the graveside service, at first my father refused, not wanting him to think about us until Hannah was found. But when Abel convinced him that he needed to concentrate on something besides his missing daughter, my parents gratefully accepted. Pastor Jensen stopped by while Abel was there, and they both went outside on the front porch for a while. I think it was just what Abel needed. Pastors minister so much to others, sometimes they don’t get much ministry themselves. They were out there a long time. When I checked on them after an hour or so, they were praying together.

  By the time supper rolled around, we were all exhausted from answering the phone and receiving people who stopped by to drop off food or offer their condolences. Finally, around seven o’clock, the only people left were Sam and Sweetie.

  “You folks sit still,” Sweetie told my parents. “I’ll heat up some of this food for you, and then Sam and me will get outta your way.”

  “I wish you’d stay,” Dad said. “And Sam, I’d like to talk to you for a few minutes, if you don’t mind.”

  I hadn’t had a chance to tell Sam about my dad’s recent revelation. I smiled reassuringly at him, but the look on his face made it clear he was apprehensive about what my father planned to say. Dad led him out on the porch, and they took up the same spots Marcus and Abel had shared earlier in the day. While Sweetie fixed dinner, Mom and I shared the good news that they were moving back. Sweetie was so happy, she got weepy. Something she doesn’t do often.

  “It’s been me and Sam for so long,” she said, sniffling. “Then our darling Gracie came along, and now you two. It’s startin’ to feel like a real family. I ain’t had one since I was a small girl. I’m feelin’ really happy about it right now.”

  I laughed. “I’m feelin’ real happy about it, too.”

  Right before dinner was served, Sam and Dad came back into the house. Sam looked relieved, and Dad looked more relaxed than I’d seen him since he’d come to Harmony. I knew he missed Papa but even though no one said it, we all felt that Papa’s burden had been lifted. Watching him disintegrate from Alzheimer’s was much worse than knowing he was rejoicing with Jesus and dancing on streets of gold with Mama. Alzheimer’s is a thief, and what it had tried to rob from Papa had been restored by God. I’d prayed for a healing on earth, but Papa had been healed in heaven instead.

  After dinner I showed Sam and Sweetie the quilt Mama had made for me.

  “Why, land’s sake if that ain’t one of the most beautiful things I ever seen,” Sweetie said. She ran her fingers lightly over the top. “But it looks almost brand new.” She scrunched up her face. “You say it had some kinda material around it?”

  “Yes. It was in a wooden compartment below the main part of the trunk.”

  “Mind if I take a look?”

  I told her to go ahead, and she went down in the basement for a while. When she came back up, she had a smile on her face. “You’re real blessed that the quilt lasted the way it did. Your grandma was one smart lady. The wood was varnished and she wrapped the quilt in unbleached muslin. Best way in the world to keep a quilt in good shape. She knowed just what she was doin’.”

  Sam loved the quilt and didn’t even complain about the flowers. We agreed it would be hung on the wall somewhere in the house. Sweetie had already informed us that the beautiful purple room would belong to us. I had a feeling the quilt would end up there.

  After Sam and Sweetie left, my parents headed to bed. We were all wiped out from the day’s events. We’d decided to have the funeral on Tuesday, and keep the wedding on Saturday. Since the invitations had already been sent, it seemed the easiest solution. For just a moment, I felt badly that Papa wouldn’t be able to see me get married, but I had a witness in my heart that he and Mama would be watching.

  Sam drove Sweetie home and then came back. We sat on the front porch, holding hands, and rocking next to each other until way after the sun went down.

  “One more week, and we’ll never have to say good-bye at the end of the day again,” Sam said as stars began to light up the heavens.

  “I know, I know,” I whispered. “Just good night.”

  The next day we all went to church and after the service had lunch at Mary’s. People kept stopping by the table to offer their condolences. Carmen, Hector’s wife, informed us that they had finally decided to change the name of the restaurant from Mary’s Kitchen to The Harmony House.

  “Hector thought about changing it to Hector’s House, but he felt it would be better to honor the town instead of drawing attention to one person.”

  Connie overheard her sister and came up to the table. “He also think about calling this place Ramirez Restaurant,” she said with a heavier accent than her sister, “but he afraid everyone believe we only serve Mexican food.” She laughed and took off to greet Harold Price and Kay Curless. Harold, a widower who had made the restaurant his second home, beamed. And Kay, a beautiful woman who had also been a widow for many years, looked as happy as she could possibly be. It was apparent that these two wonderful people would no longer be alone.

  We were getting ready to leave when Pat walked in the front door looking upset. “Good afternoon, folks,” he said when he reached our table. “Sorry to disturb you, but I wonder if I could talk to Gracie for a moment.”

  Sam shook his head. “Why is it that every time you say that, I get a bad feeling?”

  Pat grunted. “Probably past experience.”

  Sam nodded. “You’ve got that right.”

  I put my napkin down and excused myself. “Please don’t let anyone take my plate. I’m not finished.”

  “Well, that’s what happens when you get hauled off by the police before you finish eating,” Dad said.

  “I’m not being hauled off by the police,” I protested. Unfortunately I spoke a little too loudly. People at several nearby tables looked at us with interest. I followed Pat over to a table across the room where we wouldn’t be overheard.

  “What now?” I asked once we were seated. “Is there any news about Hannah?”

  He shook his head. “Nothing about Hannah. But your friends at the KBI have certainly been busy.”

  I offered him my most innocent look. “What are you talking about?”

  He glowered at me. “I think you know exactly what I mean.” My continued silence seemed to exasperate him. “It might interest you to know that pulling your social worker friend into things may have backfired on you. Big-time.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “The KBI looked into Hannah’s disappearance all right. And the first thing they did was stop by and question C. J. Bradley.”

  “Oh no.” I felt the blood drain from my face. “They weren’t supposed to …”

  “I thought so,” Pat said with a note of triumph.

  I just stared at him. “Does C.J. know?”

  “Does he know what? That you’re the one who contacted the KBI about him?”

  I swallowed hard. “Yes.”

  “I’m not sure. I wasn’t there so I have no idea what was said to him. I just know they had quite a long visit.”

  I thought for a moment. “If he’s the person they’re looking for, they’ve just tipped him off. What if he runs?”

  Pat folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair. “I don’t think he’ll be doing anything like that.”

  “How in the world can you know that?” When several customers turned to stare at us again, I realized I need
ed to calm down. I lowered my voice. “There’s no way to tell what he might do next.”

  “I’m pretty sure he’s not going to take off because he’s not the serial killer we’ve been looking for. If he leaves, it will probably be because someone called the KBI on him.”

  I sighed with exasperation. “You’re not making sense. What are you trying to tell me?”

  “I’m trying to tell you that authorities in Kansas City caught the guy.”

  I was stunned. “What do you mean they ‘caught the guy’?”

  “How much clearer do I have to make it? A couple of hours after the boys in black interrogated your friend C.J., the police cornered the killer they’ve been looking for in an apartment in Kansas City. C.J. had nothing to do with the murder in Topeka.” He held up his hand. “And before you ask me if they’re sure they’ve got the right man, the answer is yes. Without a doubt. The DNA matches, and to top it off, he confessed. Seems he’s pretty proud of himself and wants everyone to know what he’s done. A real nut job.”

  The reality of what Pat told me hit me like a ton of bricks. “But that means …”

  “That Hannah is a runaway, just like I said. This guy was singing like a noisy canary. He was asked about Hannah, along with a couple of other runaways. He didn’t know anything about them. He killed the girl in Topeka all right, but he had nothing whatsoever to do with Hannah’s disappearance.”

  “Then where is she, Pat? What’s happened to her?”

  “I can’t answer that question, Gracie. I’m still in touch with your friends from Wichita. No one’s seen her.” Connie came up to the table to see if Pat wanted anything, but he waved her away. “I know you’re worried, but I just don’t believe she was taken against her will. As far as that bracelet, she just lost it, and that’s all there is to it.” He leaned forward, his forearms on the table. “Look, I’m going to keep searching for her. You need to concentrate on burying your grandfather and getting married. Let me take this on for you, okay? Let it go … just for a while.”